2 minute read
Ask Abbey: Cooking Safety
Ask Abbey
What is the top cause of home fires?
Cooking leads to the most fires and fire-related injuries in the home. You can follow a few safety tips to prevent kitchen fires: fpw.org.
Stand by your pan!
Unattended cooking is the top cause of fires in the kitchen. And overall, cooking fires are the No. 1 cause of fires and fire-related injuries at home.
Those messages are from the nonprofit National Fire Protection Association, which marked Fire Prevention Week in October with a campaign about cooking safety.
These tips can help prevent cooking fires:
Always cook with caution.
• Stay alert. If you're tired or have consumed alcohol, don’t use the stove.
• Remain in the kitchen while frying, boiling, grilling or broiling food. If you leave the kitchen for even a short period, be sure to turn off the stove.
• If you are simmering, baking or roasting, check the food regularly, remain at home while food is cooking and use a timer to remind you that you are cooking.
• Keep anything that can catch fire away from the stovetop—for example, oven mitts, wooden utensils, food packaging, towels, curtains and long sleeves.
• Clean the stovetop, oven and burners.
• Have a kid-free and pet-free zone of at least 3 feet around the stove.
If you have a small (grease) cooking fire and decide to fight the fire…
• On the stovetop, smother the flames by sliding a lid over the pan and turning off the burner. Leave the pan covered until it is completely cooled.
• For an oven fire, turn off the heat and keep the door closed.
• Never pour water on a grease fire.
If you have any doubt about fighting a small kitchen fire…
• Just get out. Close the door behind you to help contain the fire.
• Call 911 from outside the home.
Learn more at fpw.org or contact your fire department: southfayettepa.com/fire.
