Emporia Fire responded to a small restaurant fire Saturday afternoon.
Firefighters were dispatched to Panda Express shortly before 4 pm after a wok caught fire. An employee used an extinguisher to get the fire out before fire crews arrived, but in the process the hot gas and other materials went into the exhaust hood system and set it off building-wide.
Emporia Fire Battalion Chief Ben Lienemann says there was little overall damage and no injuries, but Panda Express will have to be closed until the hood system is reset and recharged and until the Kansas Department of Health and Environment gives the all-clear. Lienemann says that process may take several days.
