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Safety Key Ingredient in Thanksgiving Cooking

Prevention begins with watching out for unattended cooking, turkey fryers and electrical hazards in combating the worst cooking fire day of the year.
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Thanksgiving Day electrical safety Infographic - English
The Biggest Splash is a Safe Swimming Pool

The Biggest Splash is a Safe Swimming Pool

Life might indeed be cool by the pool, but it’s even better when it’s safe in and around the water. That safety begins with an annual electrical inspection of your pool, hot tub or spa and all their working parts to ensure that life-saving devices...
View Story
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On the Road to Help Customers During PSPS

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Mary Finn remembers January 2021 all too well. Southern California Edison had activated its Community and Climate Equity advisor to Simi Valley, where winds exceeding 70 mph had prompted the company to initiate ...
View Story
Bring the Drama: Are You ‘Ready or Not’ for a Wildfire?

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The actor with the goofy-looking goggles perched atop his head asks his audience: “What's the difference between a disaster, an emergency and a hazard?” ...
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Stories : Safety
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Safety Key Ingredient in Thanksgiving Cooking

Prevention begins with watching out for unattended cooking, turkey fryers and electrical hazards in combating the worst cooking fire day of the year.
Paul Netter
Paul Netter
Energized by Edison Writer
@SCE_PaulN
Contributors
Infographic: Larry Tsuei
Published on November 19, 2018
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When cooking turkey or anything, it is crucial that ovens and stovetops are free of oil and grease buildup since those substances are first ignited in half (53 percent) of home-cooking fires.
When cooking turkey or anything, it is crucial that ovens and stovetops are free of oil and grease buildup since those substances are first ignited in half (53 percent) of home-cooking fires.

Los Angeles County fire inspector David Michel loves his Thanksgiving traditions as much as the next person.

But, there’s one Thanksgiving tradition he can absolutely do without: the day’s dramatic increase in home-cooking fires.

So dramatic, in fact, that Thanksgiving Day and the day before, with their distractions in and out of the kitchen, are among the worst days of the year for home-cooking fires. Nearly four times as many of the fires occur on Thanksgiving as on a typical day, according to the National Fire Protection Association.

The biggest reason for the 1,570 Thanksgiving Day cooking fires in 2016 was unattended stovetop cooking — particularly frying — that led to one-third of the fires. The day before Thanksgiving, with its 690 cooking fires, was the fourth-worst day.

Because of their shock and fire hazard, any appliances with damaged cords should never be used and immediately replaced.
Because of their shock and fire hazard, any appliances with damaged cords should never be used and immediately replaced.

Michel, a nearly 13-year veteran of the LA County Fire Department who started as a firefighter in 2006, delivers a stern safety warning about that biggest issue.

“You don’t want to ever leave cooking unattended,” said Michel. “If you’re leaving for a quick errand, the best thing to do is shut off the stove or the oven. But do not leave food cooking unattended inside the house.”

Calling oil and grease buildup on the stovetop and in the oven a problem too, he is just as keen on being prepared in the event of a fire, “always encouraging people to have a fire extinguisher and working smoke detectors on hand.”

And if there’s no fire extinguisher?

“If you have an oil or grease fire, you don’t want to ever put water on it,” said Michel, adding that baking soda can put out small cooking fires as well. “If it’s in a pan, you just want to put a top on it and turn off the burner since fire requires air to grow. Once you take the oxygen away, it’ll smother itself out.”

Unattended stovetop cooking is especially dangerous since it is the cause of 63 percent of reported home-cooking fires and leads to 86 percent of cooking fire deaths.
Unattended stovetop cooking is especially dangerous since it is the cause of 63 percent of reported home-cooking fires and leads to 86 percent of cooking fire deaths.

Fire and injury risks are also presented by other electrical hazards on a day when an estimated 88 percent of Americans eat turkey and home fires lead to an average of five fatalities, 25 injuries and $19 million in property damage.

Damaged appliance and extension cords are chief among them.

“Anything with damaged cords should be replaced immediately,” said Andrew S. Martinez, vice president of Safety, Security and Business Resiliency at Southern California Edison. “They are a fire risk, and they no longer offer protection to families from shock or serious injury.”

There are other electrical hazards, and SCE offers additional tips on enjoying your Thanksgiving safely:

  • Do not overload extension cords, do not connect two extension cords to extend their length and never place them in pinched positions.
  • Never plug more than one large appliance like a refrigerator into an outlet and never plug large appliances into extension cords.
  • Plug all countertop appliances into ground fault circuit interrupter outlets.
  • Keep electrical cords from traffic areas to prevent trips and falls.
  • Keep children at least 3 feet away from the stove and keep electrical cords from dangling off the counter within easy reach of children and pets.

As for turkey fryers, the fire association still discourages them, and Underwriters Laboratories (UL) still refuses to certify them. 

Tags: Thanksgiving Day, electrical safety
Thanksgiving Day electrical safety Infographic - English

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