New Lenox Fire District Provides Cooking Safety Guidelines

NEW LENOX, IL — Cooking fires in residential buildings occur more often on Thanksgiving Day than any other day of the year, according to the U.S. Fire Administration. With the holiday approaching, the New Lenox Fire Protection District shared some cooking safety guidelines with residents.

“Fortunately, we have been very lucky over the last few years with our residents keeping safety in mind around Thanksgiving,” said New Lenox Fire Protection District Chief Adam Riegel. “However, more residents are staying home and cooking due to the pandemic, and home cooking fires and injuries have been increasing across the nation as a result. We are hoping that our residents continue to practice safety while cooking throughout the upcoming season.”

The fire district advised:

• Be on alert! Do not use the oven or stovetop if you are sleepy or have consumed alcohol.
• Stay in the kitchen while frying, grilling, or boiling food. Turn off the stove if you leave thekitchen, even for a short period of time.
• If you are simmering, baking, roasting, or boiling food, check it regularly, remain in the home while food is cooking, and use a timer to remind you that you are cooking.
• Keep anything that can catch on fire – oven mitts, wooden utensils, food packaging, towels or curtains – away from your stovetop.
• If a small grease fire starts in a pan, smother the flames by carefully sliding a lid over the pan. Turn off the burner. Do not move the pan. Leave the lid on until the pan is completely cool. Never throw water into a grease fire. In case of an oven fire, turn off the heat and keep the door closed.

Outdoor gas-fueled turkey fryers can also pose a huge risk of injury and fires this time of year, the district said in a release. Outdoor fryers heat gallons of cooking oil to very high temperatures to cook the turkey. The risk of this oil being spilled is significant, and the injuries and fires can be severe. For your own safety, use the oil-free models or refrain from using them altogether, the district said.