Kitchen Hazards

Statistics show that you are more likely to have a fire in the kitchen than anywhere else in the home.

Image showing damage caused by a kitchen fire (6 kb)

The most important point about cooking is to avoid being distracted. Most kitchen fires occur when people leave things unattended.

If you're called away from the cooker - by the phone, or by someone at the door - take pans off the heat. It's the easiest thing in the world to forget about them.
Keep the oven door shut.
Always clean the grill pan after using it.
Don't let yourself be distracted whilst cooking.
Don't put oven gloves or tea towels down on the cooker after you've used them.
Don't cook if you're affected by alcohol or prescription drugs.
Keep electrical leads away from the cooker and water.

Don't leave children on their own in the kitchen. Most scalds and burns to children happen here.

Keep matches out of children's reach.
Don't leave pan handles sticking out where they could be tipped over (but don't put them over another ring).

Chip Pan Fire (10 kb) Chip pan fires cause one fifth of all accidental dwelling fires attended by the Fire and Rescue Service in the UK each year. A third of all deep frying injuries occur between 10 pm and 4 am. Be extra careful if you fancy chips in the middle of the night, and don't do it if you've been drinking, 4,000 people are injured in these kinds of fires each year. The safest way to deep fry is to use a thermostat-controlled electric deep fat fryer. Its thermostat stops it from ever overheating.

Cooking with oil and fat

Think about what you're doing when you're frying. You're heating oil or fat to extremely high temperatures. The oil cannot only cause terrible burns, but it can go up in flames. In fact, it's an ideal fuel for a fire, and difficult to put out.

Never be tempted to use your chip pan after consuming alcohol.
If you use an open chip pan only fill it one third full of oil or fat.
Always dry the chips before placing them in the oil.
Test the temperature with a small piece of bread or potato. If it crisps quickly, the oil is hot enough.
If the oil starts to smoke don't put food in. Turn off the heat and leave to cool.
Always keep a careful watch on the chip pan and never leave it unattended.

In the event of a chip pan fire, our advice for dealing with such an incident is...

Try to turn the power off to the chip pan, but only if safe to do so.
Leave the room, closing the door behind you, leave the house, call 999 and remain outside the house and wait for the Fire Service to arrive.
Never move the pan, even if the fire is put out. Wait for the Fire Service to arrive, they are trained and equipped to deal with hot fat and oil fires. There is a very real chance that, if disturbed, the pan will re-ignite.
Never use water, [as this will cause a fireball].
Never use wet tea towels, pan lids or chopping boards etc.

Image showing overloaded plug socket (10 kb)

Electrical appliances such as toasters and cookers are possible ignition sources for fires in the kitchen.
Don't position toasters near curtains.
Always use these appliances as directed by the manufacturer’s instructions
Do not overload electrical sockets.
In the event of a power cut or failure of your fuel supply, make sure any alternative is tested and safe to use.