Staff report

No one was injured in a house fire outside downtown Suffolk Tuesday afternoon.

Heavy smoke and visible flames were shooting through a rear window of the single-story house at 223 Prospect Rd. when firefighters arrived around 2 p.m., said Capt. Jim Judkins, spokesman for the Suffolk Fire Department. They spent about two hours battling the blaze that originated in the kitchen.

The fire is believed to have started from cooking oil that overheated on the stove, Judkins said.

The fire gutted the kitchen, with the rest of the house receiving extensive heat and smoke damage, he said.

Damage estimates totaled about $42,500.