Thursday, December 5, 2013

Holiday Safety Tips: Fire Hazards - Cooking

THE HOLIDAY SEASON IS HERE!

Travelers and Triplett Insurance want to make sure you have a safe and happy holiday season. Over the next several days we are going to post a series of blogs relating to holiday safety.

Travelers has a wonderful website filled with information to help keep your holiday hazard free. We will be using this website for the information in the blogs we post over the next several days.

Our first two blogs will focus on fire hazards.

Did you know that home fires peak between December and February?

Did you know that cooking is the leading cause of home fires year round?

Below is a list of ways you can prevent cooking fires; because after all, only you can prevent cooking fires:

1. Never leave your range or cooktop unattended while cooking.
2. When cooking, it is important to wear short, close-fitting or tightly rolled sleeves.
3. Keep your cooking area clean and free of combustible materials.
4. Be sure to clean up any spilled or splattered grease.
5. Keep a fire extinguisher readily available.
6. Never throw hot grease in the garbage as it can ignite combustible materials.
7. Do not store food in your oven.
8. Always be alert when cooking.
9. Before using, make sure your kitchen appliances, including microwaves and toasters, are plugged directly into a wall outlet. Never use an extension cord as it can overheat or overload the circuit and cause a fire.

What to do if a cooking fire flares up:

1. If you don't know if it is safe to fight the fire, leave the scene and call 911 for help.
2. If a fire flares up and you are going to attempt to fight it, call 911 for help first.
3. Smother a grease fire - never throw water on a grease fire.
4. If a fire starts in your oven, keep the door closed and turn off the heat source. Do not open until the flames are completely out.
5. If a fire starts in the microwave, turn off the microwave and do not open it until the fire is completely out.

Visit Traveler's website to learn more about how to prevent cooking fires
https://www.travelers.com/prepare-prevent/holiday-safety.aspx.

Tomorrow we will look at fire hazards relating to holiday decorating.

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