Bowl cozy, made for microwave, catches fire in Apex woman's home

An Apex homeowner's microwave caught on fire, but while it was turned off.

The fire started, ironically, with an item designed to protect you from being burned, a bowl cozy. They're for sale on Amazon and Etsy.

"They’re specifically made to be wrapped around a bowl. So it’s easy to put things in and take things out and not burn your hands," said Cathy Spargo, from Apex.

Recently she found hers smoldering in her microwave, 30 minutes after she used it.

"Thankfully I had decided to work from home for a couple hours, and I came through a couple of times and I smelled something burning," said Spargo. "I opened the microwave, and when I did, the cozy was in there and it was all black on the side. And when I opened it, a flame ignited and it started burning worse. It was just such a shock!"

Spargo had reheated bacon and thinks grease got on the cozy and caught fire.

"It was fine when I took it out, but I guess at some point after I left, it just continued to smolder," said Spargo.

The same thing happened to a vlogger out of California. She posted that she though the thread caught fire in the cozy she made.

If you have bowl cozies, know they should be made of microwave safe materials like natural fibers such as cotton. There should be nothing synthetic included in the thread.

Experts say you should wash them regularly.

Spargo says she no longer keeps her cozy in the microwave all the time. She’s relieved she got the cozy to the sink to douse the flame, and can share what happened..

"Cause I figured, you know, if I’m doing it, someone else is. And if one person does not have their house burned down or set on fire, then it’s worth it," she said.

According to the International Microwave Power Institute, microwave fires usually start for the same reason that oven or stovetop fires do: overheating food.

The institute points out though, a microwave’s design typically suffocates flames as long as the door stays closed.