Fire Preparedness Week Highlights Cooking Safety

10/7/2020 (Permalink)

There are various ways fires can erupt in the kitchen.

One of the most frequent causes of household fire and smoke damage is cooking. With Oct. 4-10 being Fire Preparedness Week, we would like to address how to keep safe in your Gainesville-area kitchen.

According to Tufts Public and Environmental Safety, more than 118,000 fires involve cooking equipment. Because of this, it is important to practice safe cooking behaviors whenever you are in the kitchen no matter how large or for what purpose the meal you are preparing.

• Protect Children from Scalds and Burns. Young children are at high risk of being burned by hot food and liquids. Keep children away from cooking areas by enforcing a "kid-free zone" of three feet around the stove.

• Watch What You’re Cooking. The leading cause of fires in the kitchen is unattended cooking. Stay in the kitchen when you are frying, grilling, or cooking food on the stop top or broiling food.

• Choose the Right Equipment and Use It Properly. Follow manufacturers' instructions when using cooking equipment. Remember to plug microwave ovens and other cooking appliances directly into an outlet. Never use an extension cord for a cooking appliance, as it can overload the circuit and cause a fire. Cook only with equipment designed and intended for cooking and heat your home only with equipment designed and intended for heating.

• Avoid Using Deep Fat Turkey Fryers. The use of a deep fat turkey fryer can be very dangerous. If you do decide to use one, use it at a safe distance from buildings and other items that can catch fire. Never use a turkey fryer in a garage or on a wooden deck. Watch the fryer carefully, as the oil will continue to heat until it catches fire. To avoid oil spillover, don’t overfill the fryer. Oil-less turkey fryers are available. For more information, visit the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s website.

• Keep Things That Can Catch Fire and Heat Sources Apart. Keep anything that can catch fire - potholders, oven mitts, wooden utensils, paper or plastic bags, food packaging, towels, or curtains - away from your stovetop. Keep the stovetop, burners, and oven clean. Wear short, close-fitting or tightly rolled sleeves when cooking.
  
• Prevent Scalds and Burns. To prevent spills due to overturned appliances containing hot food or liquids, use the back burner when possible, and/or turn pot handles away from the stove's edge. Use oven mitts or potholders when moving hot food from ovens, microwave ovens, or stovetops.                                                              

Make sure to follow to follow these helpful tips, Whenever there is a problem with smoke damage in your home please give us a call at SERVPRO of Gainesville West/Alachua County West at 352-374-6589.