WEST BEND, Wis. — No one was injured following a gas explosion at a Qdoba in West Bend early Thursday morning.
According to the West Bend Fire Department, officials responded to a water flow alarm at the restaurant on Paradise Drive around 2:40 a.m. The alarm company called back and said it was a false alarm. However, fire crews found a small fire and a fire sprinkler activation that controlled the fire prior to arrival.
Fire officials say contractors were at the restaurant to clean the vents for the cooking hood system. The contractors did not shut off the gas and they blew out the pilot lights for the unit.
"The plastic sheeting they put over the oven to contain the debris from cleaning the ductwork caused enough gas to build up inside the contained area," the West Bend Fire Department said in a statement. "A spark of unknown origin ignited the methane (natural gas) that was in the flammable range, subsequently activating the fire sprinkler system."
Fire officials are reminding the public to turn off the gas in any appliances where maintenance is being performed. Natural gas has a flammability range between 5% and 15%.
"The outcome could have been far worse had there been more natural gas in a wider area around the stove," the fire department said.
WATCH: Gas explosion at West Bend Qdoba
