Simple tips to prevent potentially devastating kitchen fires
Los Angeles County Fire Capt. Brian Kight has seen some devastating house fires while working for the department, and he said many of the kitchen fires that started could have been prevented.
"One of the major problems is leaving the kitchen unattended," Kight said. "When people are cooking in the kitchen, they need to stay in the kitchen."
He said something left on the stove or in the oven can spill over and start a fire within seconds. If someone doesn't have a smoke detector or kitchen vents that are running, a situation can quickly get out of control.
"People panic when there's a lot of smoke," Kight said.
Kight said that when a grease fire starts, people often try to fan it or throw water on it, which just spreads the flames.
"Your pots and pans usually have lids; you can put this on top of them, wait approximately 30 seconds," Kight said.
Without oxygen, the fire will suffocate, and you can turn the burner off. If the flames are too high and you don't want to get too close, a small fire extinguisher will do the trick. Look for one labelled ABC.
"You kind of want to point it down, towards underneath the fire," Kight said.
Kight said some simple habits can help prevent kitchen fires from starting in the first place. Making sure pan handles are turned outward, moving flammable towels and potholders away from open burners and not letting grease build up.
"You're going to want to keep everything clean and free of grease, because even old grease will catch fire," Kight said.
Even though the stove is usually the most dangerous area of the kitchen, Kight said that too many appliances plugged in can also pose a risk.
"I've seen it happen numerous times in house fires, people say, 'I didn't do anything, they were just plugged in,'" Kight said. "Keep them unplugged; you'd rather be safe than sorry."
