Thanksgiving Safety Tips

•Have a fire extinguisher available not more than 10 feet from the stove, on the exit side of the room. Do not store the extinguisher near the stove or a fire may block you from accessing it.
 
•Start holiday cooking with a clean stove and oven.
 
•When cooking, do not wear clothing with loose sleeves or dangling jewelry. The clothing can catch on fire and the jewelry can catch on pot handles, causing spills and burns.
 
•Cook on the back burners when possible and turn pot handles in so they don’t extend over the edge of the stove.
 
•Never leave cooking unattended. If you must leave the kitchen while cooking, turn off the stove or have someone else watch what is being cooked. Unattended cooking is a common cause of home fires.
 
•Keep Thanksgiving decorations and kitchen clutter away from sources of direct heat.
 
•For many deep frying the turkey is now a holiday tradition. However, if you don't take precautions, you may end up with an injury or fire. Deep Fryers can be dangerous because:
 
    - Many units easily tip over, spilling the five gallons of hot oil within the cooking pot.
 
    - If the cooking pot is overfilled with oil, the oil may spill out of the unit when the turkey is placed into the cooking pot. Oil may hit the burner/flames causing a fire to engulf the entire unit.
 
    - Partially frozen turkeys placed into the fryer can cause a spillover effect. This too, may result in an extensive fire.
 
    - With no thermostat controls, the units also have the potential to overheat the oil to the point of combustion.
 
    - The sides of the cooking pot, lid and pot handles get dangerously hot, posing severe burn hazards.