Cooking Safety

COOKING SAFETY

More fires start in the kitchen than in any other room of a house and unattended cooking is the number one cause of kitchen fires. Forming fire-safe habits is one of the best defenses against having a fire in the home. The City of Jefferson Fire offers the following safety tips to keep you and your family safe in the kitchen:

• Never leave cooking unattended. Turn off the stove if you need to leave the kitchen while cooking.
• Be alert while cooking. If you are drowsy, don’t cook.
• Keep potholders, towels, napkins, food packaging, and clutter away from the stovetop.
• Keep stovetop, burners, oven, and toaster clean so that grease and other residue don’t catch fire.
• Wear short or tight-fitting sleeves when cooking. If your clothes catch fire: Stop, Drop, and Roll.
• Use dry, fire-resistant oven mitts or potholders.
• Turn pot handles inward while on the stove-top so they won’t be knocked off or pulled down by children.
• Maintain a “kid and pet free zone” three feet around your stove and areas where hot food or beverages are located.
• Use a lid to smother small grease fires by carefully sliding the lid over the pan to smother the fire. Turn off the stove and leave the pan covered until it has cooled.
• Use caution when opening food packages heated in the microwave. Escaping steam can burn the skin.
• If someone is burned, cool the burn with cool water for 3-5 minutes. Cover with a clean, dry cloth. Seek medical attention if needed.
• Have working smoke alarms and a home fire escape plan.
• If smoke alarms sound during normal cooking, do not disable the smoke alarm or remove the batteries. Instead, press the silence button or open a door or window and fan the area with a towel.