Chesapeake In The Know

Cooking is the number one cause of home fires and fire injuries and it most often happens when people leave their stove unattended while cooking. With so many of us cooking at home now more than ever before, it’s a good time to remember a few safety tips.

• Keep a lid nearby anytime you’re cooking on the stove. This can be used to smother small grease fires.
• Turn the pot handles away from the edge of the stove, especially if you have young children in the house.
• Don’t use a portable fire extinguisher on a grease fire because it could actually make it larger.
• Don’t leave anything cooking on the stove unattended. Focus on what you’re doing and set timers so you don’t get distracted. This is the most important thing to remember!

Keep in mind that fire safety is especially important for our older residents. Older Americans are more likely to die in a house fire than anyone else so if that’s you or you’re a caregiver to one, please pay extra attention to fire safety.  Make sure there are enough smoke alarms in the house so that they can be easily heard and have an escape plan in place that takes into consideration any physical limitations.