Weekend food cart fire in Bend points to new state fire codes, requirements for restaurants on wheels

New code to be phased in over the next two years

BEND, Ore. (KTVZ) -- A fire over the weekend caused $8,000 in damage to a northwest Bend food cart, which in turn prompted a Bend Fire & Rescue official to point out a new state fire code taking effect over the next couple of years, aimed at improving safety for the restaurants on wheels.

The fire broke out Saturday afternoon at the Bigfoot BBQ cart in the Podski lot on northwest Arizona Avenue, starting in the cart's cook top. 

The owner of Bigfoot BBQ, Jon Calvin, says he was skiing with his son when he got a phone call from the cart manager, saying something wasn't right. 

"I wasn't sure what I would expect when I got there," Calvin said Monday. "The street was blocked off with fire departments. There wasn't any smoke in the air, so I thought that it could be okay. But as we walked into the Podski area, the whole place was still bustling with people and four firefighters were hacking into the side of the cart with pick-axes."

Bend Fire's investigation revealed the backsplash behind the cook top had been installed with a cutout that contained a covered electrical outlet. The cutout exposed the electrical box and adjacent wood and foam insulation to high heat, and permitted an accumulation of grease, leading to the fire.  

"All we really do is toast buns on the little griddle," he said. "Our fire didn't have anything to do with grease. It didn't have anything to do with fire suppression -- the fire was in the wall."

Deputy Fire Marshal Cindy Kettering said, "Very few mobile food carts have operations that don't produce any grease whatsoever, even if you're using butter, oil. All of that is going to produce grease, even if you're using it just in small amounts. So while it wasn't the cause, it -- the small amount of accumulation that was there may have been a contributing factor."

Kettering explained the 2022 Oregon fire code, with will require upgrades aimed at keeping workers and the public safe.

"Commercial kitchen hood systems, just like you'd see in a brick-and-mortar restaurant," she said. "Requirements for cleaning and servicing of those systems."

Kettering said other requirements are installing systems to detect for gas like carbon monoxide.

She said fire sprinklers are not going to be a requirement in the new fire code. 

"The other part of it is, is not just upgrading the systems and the detection, but it's also training the staff that that are in these food carts every day," she added. "Teaching them how to shut off the gas, how to shut off the electricity, how a fire extinguisher works, and when to use the fire extinguisher and when to just get out safely."

Calvin said they also serve at the Outfitter Bar in the Seventh Mountain Resort, and are focusing on that side of their business until a new food cart is built.