Butler firefighters on Thursday afternoon kept a kitchen fire from spreading to the rest of a Mercer Street house.

After responding to the 12:40 p.m. call, firefighters doused the blaze within a few minutes using foam.

Firefighters were on the scene until about 1:30 p.m.

Butler Fire Chief Nick Ban said the flames were spreading from the stove when his crew arrived at the two-story brick house at 400 Mercer St., owned by Rodney and Dawn Sloan.

"It was starting to go up the wall," he said.

Ban said the fire started when the Sloans' 15-year-old daughter was heating oil in a pot.

According to Ban, the girl turned away from the stove to feed the dogs and the oil caught fire.

He said the girl sprayed water from the sink faucet, which was ineffective.

Although she grabbed a fire extinguisher to use, nothing came out.

Neither parent was home at the time, Ban said.

While the girl was trying to put out the fire, neighbor Tim Noullet heard the girl's screams and ran to the house.

Along with getting the girl and her twin sister out of the house, Noullet retrieved their two brothers, ages 8 and 10.

The twin who was cooking was treated at the scene by Butler Ambulance EMTs for irritation caused by the heat. Ban compared the injuries to a bad case of sunburn.

Ban estimated damages to the kitchen at $20,000. The family is insured.