By Tanasia Kenney
Merced Sun-Star
CHESTERFIELD COUNTY, Va. — Virginia firefighters issued a public warning after they said a homeowner accidentally “cooked” a handgun that was left in the oven, causing a blast.
Firefighters were called on Sept. 5 after the resident reported an oven had “exploded” at their Chesterfield home, the county fire department said on its Facebook page.
“When firefighters opened the oven to investigate, they found a handgun inside,” Chesterfield County Fire and EMS wrote. “It turns out, someone turned the oven on with the gun inside, the weapon heated up, and five rounds went off.”
Authorities said no one was hurt.
“Cooking off,” also known as thermally induced firing, happens when unfired ammunition detonates due to heat from its surroundings, according to the Journal of the Franklin Institute.
Photos shared by officials showed the glass door to the oven completely shattered. The partially melted gun was stuck to one of the shelves when authorities removed it, a photo shows.
Firefighters didn’t release additional details but urged residents to properly store their firearms.
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“These pictures show why you should never store anything in your oven,” they wrote. “When you place any item in the oven it is easy to forget it is there, which can lead to a fire or something worse when you turn it on.”
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