A hot pan of grease sparked an early morning fire Saturday in Butler's Island neighborhood, leaving several people homeless, authorities said. City firefighters had to rescue a cat but everyone in the two-story house at 415 Hazel Ave. got out on their own, said Butler Fire Chief Nick Ban. "The (3:16 a.m.) call came in as a grease fire. It was definitely unintentional," Ban said of the blaze. Firefighters got to the home and found heavy smoke and flames coming from the southwest corner of the first floor, where the kitchen is. "We knocked down most of it and contained it to the kitchen area," Ban said. "But it got into the wall and extended into the second-floor rear corner." The city's ladder truck was used to get at the upstairs fire, and the VA Butler Healthcare fire department was called in for backup, authorities said. Fire officials did not immediately know the names of the tenants or the owner of the rental home. Neighbors weren't sure how many people lived at the house. "But there were a lot of them there," said neighbor Denny Offstein, who owns an auto repair business across the street. "They're always coming and going." The fire left the house uninhabitable, and the Butler chapter of the American Red Cross was called to help the occupants find temporary housing. Ban estimated the damage at $25,000 to the house and another $15,000 to its contents. Firefighters were back at the station shortly before 6 a.m.
