A Thanksgiving blaze that destroyed three homes in Massachusetts and injured a woman was possibly caused by deep-frying a turkey, officials said.
New Bedford residents heard an explosion around 9:45 a.m. Thursday, WBZ-TV reported, as flames broke out at a home and quickly spread to homes on each side.
A witness told the news station that she saw the fire start on her neighbor's back deck while he was trying to fry a turkey.
“He says he was cooking the deep-fried turkey and the propane tank exploded. I heard the explosion, but I thought it was thunder,” she told the news outlet.
Video of the incident shows firefighters trying to extinguish the blaze as smoke fills the air. One woman was taken to a hospital. Her condition was unknown.
Around 27 others in the three homes were able to escape the fires. The displaced families were being assisted by the Red Cross.
Acting New Bedford Fire Chief Scott Kruger said investigators are looking into the whether “a cooking mishap involving deep frying" caused the fire. He said firefighters responded to as many as four cooking "mishaps" Thursday.
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“You can’t underestimate the danger of cooking because people are amateurs,” he said.
The fire department did not immediately respond to inquires from Fox News.
In a video posted to Facebook, New Bedford Mayor Jon Mitchell said: “It's so important when you're preparing your meal to do it safely and take extra precautions."
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