Aprons from laundromat self-ignite, causing smoke damage at Peteet's Cheesecakes

OAK PARK, Mich. (FOX 2) - A fire broke out at Peteet's Famous Cheesecakes, on Nine Mile in Oak Park.

The bakery's in-store video caught the 200 aprons in a bucket from smoke to fire at 5 a.m. June 29th.  The laundry was in a plastic bucket and went up in flames. The fire went out on it's own before firefighters arrived - but the damage from smoke had already been done.

"That was the last thing I expected to hear, was that your bakery is on fire," said Patrick Peteet. "From a laundromat to a bucket, it self-ignited eight hours later."

Peteet had gone to a local laundromat on Monday night, cleaned the aprons, and put them in a bucket around 8 p.m.

"Dryers heat up to 500 degrees which is what was explained," he said. "If you are not letting those clothes air out, and you take it home in a basket, just be aware because we don't want this to happen to anybody else."

Peteet says he makes about a thousand cheesecakes a day - not to mention cupcakes, cannolis and more.  Everything that was ready to be sold for the holiday- now tastes like smoke.

FOX 2: "So you can't use any of this?"

"Can't use any of this because it's not safe," he said, adding that smoke also got inside the freezer. "Smoke found its way in. The smoke does. I won't be using this, we won't be donating it, we're gonna be throwing it all out."

Peteet says the fire alarm was working which tipped off the Oak park police and fire department. There were no sprinklers. There is air conditioning in the building, but that was no match against the heat from those aprons.  But no one was hurt..

Peteet is hoping his store can be back up and running, within 30 days.