Kitchen safety

Did you know that more than 50% of accidental fires at home are started by cooking?

Many kitchen fires start when you are not paying attention or if you leave things unattended. Follow the safety tips on how to keep safe whilst you are cooking and also what to do if a fire starts in your kitchen.

Whilst cooking:

don’t get distracted when you are cooking - turn off or turn down the heat if you have to leave the cooking unattended, for example to take a phone call or answer the door
take care if you’re wearing loose clothing as it can catch fire easily
don't cook if you have been drinking alcohol your concentration levels are lower - the risk of accidents is greater in the kitchen if you have been drinking
keep tea towels, clothes and electrical leads away from the cooker and hob
don’t leave children alone in the kitchen, keep matches, lighters and saucepan handles out of reach of children and fit a safety catch on the oven door
make sure saucepan handles are not sticking out from the hob or over a naked flame
remember to check that the oven or hob are switched off after you have finished cooking
take extra care when deep-fat frying or cooking with oil – hot oil can catch fire easily – use a thermostat controlled deep-fat fryer which will make sure the fat doesn’t get too hot

If a pan catches fire in your kitchen:

don’t move it because it will be very hot
if it is safe to do so - turn off the heat – never lean over the pan to reach the controls
never use water on chip pan fires as this will cause a fire ball
get out, stay out, call 999

Kitchen fires can also start by being careless with appliances. Follow the general kitchen safety tips to help keep you safe at home.

General kitchen safety:

clean your oven, hob and toaster on a regular basis – a build up of fat, crumbs or grease can easily catch fire
don’t use matches or lighters to light gas cookers – spark devices are safer, these can be bought from hardware stores
don’t put anything that is made of metal or is metallic inside the microwave
regularly check that the ventilation in your kitchen, like range hoods or fans is working properly and is not blocked up. This is especially important if you have a gas cooker in case any leaking gas builds up.
keep electrical leads and appliances away from water
electrical appliances should be turned off at the plug when they're not being used
don't overload electrical sockets - only have one plug in each socket - if you need more plugs than there are sockets, use a 'bar type' fuse adaptor and keep the total amps of all plugs in the adaptor to 13 amps or less. Also, remember that higher-amp appliances such as washing machines always need a socket to themselves.

If an electrical appliance catches fire:

don’t throw water on it
if it is safe to do so, you may be able to put out the fire immediately by pulling out the plug for the appliance or switching off the power at the fuse box
if the fire doesn’t go out, get out of the house, stay out and call 999