Menu
Don't forget about that pie in the oven
The number of cooking fires typically goes up around the holidays and while the Fort Scott Fire Department deals with its share of these types of fires each year, most are not serious. FSFD Chief Paul Ballou said firefighters handle mostly unattended cooking fires throughout the year and not just during the holidays.
"Some years are better than others," Ballou said. "It kind of runs in spurts. Boil-overs in the oven are a big one, the turkey will boil over. One year we had a run of pie fires where people were leaving the oven on. A lot of family is in (during the holidays) and people leave food going and they're not thinking and time goes by and it just gets away from them and boil something over."
Ballou said cooking fires happen throughout the entire year with some taking place during the holiday season. In recent years, most people have been careful and practicing safety in the kitchen.
"The last several years, the holidays have been great," Ballou said. "People have been doing really good. They're paying attention to what's on the stove or in the oven. Generally a boil-over is what we deal with. And we have got to them pretty quick where they've not caused a lot of damage."
According to the National Fire Protection Association, cooking is and has long been the leading cause of home structure fires and home fire injuries. Home cooking fires peak on major holidays that traditionally include cooking, such as Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Easter.
Ballou said in several local cases in recent year, the cooking fires were "self-extinguished" but can produce "a lot of smoke," which Ballou said can also be damaging.
"If you have a cooking fire in a pan, we recommend that if you can do it safely, to not use flour but baking soda, or simply cover it with a pan lid," he said. "And of course we always recommend an extinguisher in the kitchen. If they have a situation, they can call us anyway and we'll look at it, especially if there's a lot of smoke."
The NFPA 2013 "Home Fires Involving Cooking Equipment" report states that in 2011, Thanksgiving was the leading day for home cooking fires, with three times as many fires occurring on that holiday as any average day of the year. In 2011, there were 1,210 fires on Thanksgiving, a 183 percent increase over the daily average.
"Thanksgiving is a fun and festive holiday, but it can also be very hectic," NFPA Vice-president of Outreach and Advocacy Lorraine Carli said in a news release. "Hosting and entertaining guests can cause distractions and it's easy to forget about what's cooking in the oven and on the stove top."
Ballou said "one big thing" the fire department wants people to watch is the recently popular method of deep frying turkeys.
"That's still a very dangerous thing to do if not careful," he said. "If they're not completely thawed and there's water and ice in it, you can have some serious situations there ... the boil-over grease gets on the fire underneath and then you have a big fire."
Ballou said those who choose to deep fry turkeys on Thanksgiving should not do it in an enclosed space such as a garage.
"We don't recommend that," he said. "If you deep fry a turkey and run water over the top of it to help thaw it, make sure you get all the water out. Make sure the turkey is thoroughly thawed. Make sure it's dry before cooking. And just go with the safety recommendations on those cookers. Just be careful and follow the recommendations. We recommend to read all the safety instructions and most all of that is right in those instructions."
On the other hand, the NFPA discourages the use of turkey fryers, saying the use of these fryers can lead to devastating burns and other injuries and the destruction of property due to the large amount and high temperature of oil used, the news release said. NFPA urges those who prefer fried turkey to look for grocery stores, specialty food retailers and restaurants that sell deep fried turkeys, or to consider purchasing a new outdoor turkey cooking appliance that does not use oil.
According to figures provided by Ballou, the FSFD responded to a total of 174 structure fires between 2009 and 2014. Of those, 20 fires, or about 11.5 percent, were labeled as cooking fires confined to container and resulted in $1,950 in total losses. A total of 139, or about 80 percent, were building fires that resulted in about $2.9 million in total losses.
The remainder of the fires were labeled as confined chimney or flue fires (seven), incinerator overload or malfunction (one), fuel burner/boiler malfunction (one), confined commercial compactor fire (one) and contained trash or rubbish fires (five). Most of these resulted in minimal loss.
Over a 10-year time period, from 2004-2014, the FSFD responded to a total of 362 structure fires. Thirty-eight fires, or about 10.5 percent of those, were cooking fires confined to container and resulted in $5,000 in total loss. About 81 percent, or 292 fires, were building fires resulting in about $9.8 million in total losses.
The remainder of the fires during that period were chimney or flue fires confined to chimney (15), incinerator overload or malfunction (three), fuel burner/boiler malfunction (one), confined commercial compactor fire (two) and contained trash or rubbish fires (11).
Overall, U.S. fire departments responded to an estimated average of 156,600 home fires involving cooking equipment from 2007-2011 per year. These fires caused an annual average of 400 civilian deaths, 5,080 civilian injuries and $853 million in direct property damage, the NFPA news release said.
"By recognizing the risks of the holidays and making simple adjustments, however, people can greatly reduce their chance of home cooking fires," Carli said.
The NFPA also recommends the following safety tips for cooking on Thanksgiving:
* Keep an eye on what is being fried. Always stay in the kitchen while frying, grilling or broiling food. If leaving the kitchen for even a short period of time, turn off the stove.
* Keep things that can catch fire such as oven mitts, wooden utensils, food packaging, towels and curtains away from the cooking area.
* Be alert when cooking. People who are sleepy or who have consumed alcohol should not use the stove or stove top.
Those people who decide to fight small grease cooking fires should observe the following tips, according to the NFPA:
* On the stove top, 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.
Those people who have doubts about fighting a small fire should leave the house and close the door behind them to help contain the fire. They should then call 911 or the local emergency number from outside the home.
"People want to have a great holiday and all the family in but be careful in the kitchen and make sure you don't leave anything unattended while cooking," Ballou said.
Additional resources for Thanksgiving and other cooking safety tips can be found online at NFPA's Cooking Fire Safety Central webpage.