Make sure your Thanksgiving doesn't go up in smoke

Sue Byrne

Your kitchen may be the center of your holiday activities, but be careful—it’s also where most house fires start. And the peak day for home cooking fires is Thanksgiving, when we’re often distracted by friends and family as we’re trying to get the big feast on the table.

“Unattended cooking is the top cause of fires in the home,” says Elliot F. Kaye, chairman of the Consumer Product Safety Commission. And fires can be deadly; the greatest risk isn’t from burns but from inhaling smoke and toxic gases.

These tips from the CPSC will help make sure you don’t become a statistic on turkey day:

How to prevent a cooking fire

  • Stay in the kitchen and keep an eye on your cooking.

  • Wear short or close-fitting sleeves. Loose clothing can catch fire.

  • Turn pan handles toward the back of the stove to prevent children and others from spilling a pan’s scalding contents onto themselves.

  • Keep curtains, towels, and pot holders away from hot surfaces, and store solvents and flammable cleaners away from heat sources.

  • Watch children closely so they don’t come into contact with cooking food or hot stovetops.

How to put out a cooking fire

  • Call the fire department (911) immediately.

  • Slide a pan lid over flames to smother a grease or oil fire, then turn off the heat and leave the lid in place until the pan cools. Never carry the pan outside.

  • Extinguish other food fires with baking soda. Never use water or flour on cooking fires.

  • Keep the oven door shut and turn off the heat to smother an oven or broiler fire.

  • Keep a fire extinguisher in the kitchen. Make sure you have the right type.

In addition, keep a working smoke detector and fire extinguisher in your home. If you do get burned while cooking, follow these tips from the National Safety Council.

Thinking about frying your bird this year? Don’t use an outdoor propane-powered fryer because they are just too dangerous. Instead, consider an electric fryer designed for indoor use. If you want to cook your turkey outdoors, buy a smaller bird (up to 16 pounds) and grill in a covered charcoal or gas grill using a drip pan.

—Sue Byrne

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