Turkey frying ends in disaster
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 I'll probably stick to baking them now. 
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-- Bill Fickett
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ST. CLOUD, Minnesota (AP) -- Bill Fickett wanted to give his wife a break from the kitchen on Thanksgiving, so he offered to cook. His kind gesture ended up causing about $14,000 in damage.
"I don't know how it happened," Fickett said. "My wife just had a baby, so I said I'd take care of the turkey."
He decided to try his hand at deep-fat frying a turkey. He borrowed a fryer and got directions from a friend. He bought a thermometer to make sure the oil didn't get too hot.
Fickett said he was heating up about 3 gallons of oil before the fire started. He adjusted the temperature to the recommended 350 degrees, then stepped into the house to get the bird.
Next thing he knew, smoke was pouring out of the garage.
By the time firefighters got there Thursday afternoon, the garage was in flames, said Gene Kostreba, acting assistant fire chief. He said the fire was contained to the garage, which was destroyed. Fickett said it was insured.
No one was injured. The fire was still under investigation, Kostreba said.
Fickett and his family still had a nice Thanksgiving dinner.
"We just had to have chicken instead of turkey," he said. "I'll probably stick to baking them now."
Copyright 2003 The
Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
