Fire engines raced to a town's market square after locals had raised the alarm as crews arrived on scene to find out the cause had been burnt cooking.
Four fire crews, two from Oxfordshire and two from Warwickshire, were called to Butchers Row in Banbury shortly before 11am on Friday.
Locals could see the fire engines in the town's Marketplace with many eyewitnesses suggesting the cause of the emergency was a gas leak.
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But Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service confirmed the cause was in fact burnt cooking.
Commenting at 12.30pm, spokesman for the service said: "We were called at 10.56am on Friday, 8 November, sending four fire engines (two from Oxfordshire and two from Warwickshire) to Butchers Row in Banbury.
"The callout was a result of burnt cooking.
"Fire engines have now left the scene, however, fire safety officers remain on site."
A worker in the town, who asked not to be named, said he understood the chief fire officer was at the scene.
He added that locals were not being told much by the fire crews as eyewitnesses were left wondering what was going on.
Oxfordshire Fire and Rescue Service has a 24-hour crew based at Banbury fire station which is listed as an on-call station.
More information can be found on the fire stations through the Oxfordshire County Council website.
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