GEORGETOWN– Chief Fred Mitchell and the Georgetown Fire Department would like to provide safety tips to ensure residents stay safe and prevent home fires while cooking this holiday season.
According to the National Fire Protection Agency, cooking fires are the leading cause of home fires and fire injuries.
“We want to make sure that residents remain vigilant in the kitchen while cooking, to avoid any personal injury or damage to property that could result from cooking home fires,” Chief Mitchell said.
To prevent cooking home fires, the Georgetown Fire Department wishes to share the following tips from the NFPA:
- Never leave anything cooking unattended.
- Stay home when cooking, and be attentive to cooking appliances.
- Keep children and pets away from the stove. Kids and pets should be kept three feet away from the stove.
- Make sure kids stay away from hot food and liquids. The steam or splash from vegetables, gravy or coffee can cause serious burns.
- Keep knives out of the reach of children.
- Be sure electric cords from an electric knife, coffee maker, plate warmer or mixer are not dangling off the counter within easy reach of a child.
- Keep matches and utility lighters out of the reach of children — up high in a locked cabinet.
- Keep the kitchen and dining room floor clear so you don’t trip over kids, toys, pocketbooks or bags while cooking or handling food.
- Test your smoke alarms and make sure their batteries are replaced if needed.
- The Georgetown Fire Department also reminds residents to test their smoke and carbon monoxide alarms regularly.
The Georgetown Fire Department also strongly advises against using turkey fryers, and wishes to share the following information from the Federal Emergency Management Agency:
- Turkey fryers may tip over, in which case they may spill hot oil.
- Overfilled cooking spots will cause oil in a turkey fryer to spill over when the turkey is placed inside.
- If the turkey is not fully defrosted, hot oil may splatter.
- Turkey fryers may overheat and ignite a fire.
- Remember: the pot, lid and handles of a turkey fryer can get hot and cause serious burns.
If you have more questions about cooking safely in your home please contact the Georgetown Fire Department at (978) 352-5757 or fireprevention@georgetownma.gov.
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