The holiday season is a time for family, friends and feasts. This may mean you will be spending more time than usual in the kitchen. As we get ready for the festive season, remember to make cooking and fire safety a key part of your recipe!
Thanksgiving is the peak day for home cooking fires in the country with more than three times the daily average for such incidents. Christmas Day and Christmas Eve ranked second and third, with both having nearly twice the daily average. Unattended cooking was by far the leading contributing factor in cooking fires and fire deaths.
Although we are here to help 24/7, you can avoid an unexpected visit from the fire department by following these tips!
- Stay in the kitchen when you are cooking on the stove top so you can keep an eye on the food.
- Stay in the home when cooking your turkey, and check on it frequently.
- Keep children away from the stove. The stove will be hot and kids should stay three feet away.
- Keep anything that can catch on fire — potholders, oven mitts, wooden utensils, paper or plastic bags, food packaging, and towels or curtains — away from your stove top and oven or any other appliance that generates heat.
- Keep the floor clear so you don’t trip over kids, toys, pocketbooks or bags.
- Turkey fryers use large amounts of oil at high temperatures, which can cause devastating burns. Only use these fryers with extreme caution. If you do use a fryer, use it outdoors and make sure it's on a sturdy surface, away from things that can burn.
- Before hosting friends or family, make sure your smoke alarms are working. Test them by pushing the test button.
- In the event of an oven fire, keep the oven door closed and turn off the heat. If the fire persists, call 911.
- Keep a lid or cooking sheet nearby. In the event of a grease fire, cover the fire with a lid and turn the burner off. If the fire has spread to other parts of the kitchen, evacuate and call 911 once outside.
Cooking Fire Safety Resources