Thanksgiving Day Prone To Cooking Fires

Don’t let the turkey get the best of you this Thanksgiving as Baxter Fire Chief Matthew White said cooking fires frequently happen on Thanksgiving Day.

White said more accidents are likely to happen with so many households cooking. White said there are several different reasons a cooking fire might spark up during the day of giving thanks.

“The cooking utensil you are using like with cooking in an oven or if you are doing a deep-fried turkey,” White said. “The other is unattended. That’s one of the biggest problems we have, are people get busy and they will put food in the oven or the fryer and then they will get busy and they will turn away. You have faulty equipment sometimes but those are usually the big ones.”

White said the best way to put out a fire is either using a fire extinguisher or smothering the fire. White said people should not move a pan if it is on fire as it could potentially spread the fire.

“We do not recommend you picking it up moving that,” White said. “Because usually, that trails it wherever it goes, and that drips out and that will trail the fire out the door. Covering it up, keeping it covered up, and having an extinguisher ready are the big things.”

White said most times it can be distracting to cook with kids running around and it is best to keep them away from the kitchen. White said checking equipment and clearing the cooking area before cooking is one of the best preventative steps to take to avoid a cooking fire.

“Preheating your oven and getting it correct and just being attentive of that,” White said. “Make sure also that you don’t leave any dish towels or holders that are near the stove that can actually catch on fire. Removing some of those items those are good ways to kind of just go through your kitchen and make sure it is fire safe.”

White also said it would be a good time to check smoke alarms and see if they are working. White said if you find that your smoke alarm is not working you can call your local fire department and they can put one in for you. Maybe now on Thanksgiving when someone says fire they will be talking about how good the food is rather than an actual fire.