Monday 15 February
09.00hrs
Avon Fire & Rescue Service is using National Chip Week as
chance to spread the cooking safety message.
More than half of all house fires in the Avon area start in the
kitchen, with 25% of those blazes caused by cooking with hot fat or
oil. As this week is National Chip Week (February 15 to 21) fire
crews have been out in the community encouraging people to ‘love
chips, hate burns and fry safely’.
Across the Avon area firefighters will be offering the
public vouchers for a free bag of oven chips if they sign up for a
Home Fire Safety Visit. During the visits staff from AF&RS
provide information and advice on all aspects of fire safety,
including cooking safely.
Station Manager Neil Liddington, AF&RS Deputy Head of
Community Safety, said: “Fires that break out in the kitchen remain
the most common cause of house fires we attend. The effects can be
devastating, financially costly and lead to serious injury or even
death which is why we’re committed to providing advice and
education throughout the community.
“Most kitchen fires start when people go out of the room or lose
concentration even for a short time. Leaving any cooking unattended
on a hob, particularly pans that contain hot fat or oil, presents a
real risk of a fire breaking out which can spread rapidly, filling
your home with thick black smoke.
“If you are cooking chips, by far the safest option is to use
oven chips or a thermostatically controlled deep fat fryer. Chip
pans really are an accident waiting to happen.”
Avon Fire & Rescue Service’s top cooking safety
tips:
- Never fill a pan more than one-third full of oil or fat;
- Never leave any cooking on the hob or under the grill
unattended;
- Never put food in a pan if the oil begins to smoke. Turn off
the oil and leave it to cool; and
- If you’re having a alcoholic drink, save it until afterwards -
drinking alcohol and cooking is a recipe for disaster.
If a pan does catch fire:
- Don’t move it;
- Turn off the heat, if it is safe to do so;
- Never throw water or a wet towel over it as this could make it
worse or cause you to injure yourself; and
- Leave, close the kitchen door and call 999.
If you would like more advice or information please visit our
cooking
safety pages or download the leaflets below.