As the holiday season kickstarts with pre-feast shopping, Augusta firefighters at Fire Station 2, located at 928 Telfair St., reminded everyone of safety tips to prevent home fires.
With the winter season being the busiest time of year for emergency responders, Capt. Jermaine Jennings and firefighter Sthephanie Soto set aside part of their Tuesday morning, on Nov. 22, to warn folks of the importance of preparation.
Jennings said he believed it is necessary to warn the audiences because cooking is a daily activity and can lead to many becoming careless against fires.
“You should have a fire extinguisher in your house at all times, and you should never mix water with grease fires,” he said. “I know people watch a lot of TV, and you see them throw water on kitchen fires, but that’s not the right thing to do.”
Despite old remedies such as throwing flour or baking soda onto the fire, Jennings said no one should add anything onto a cooking fire and to only use an extinguisher. He said nearby stores, such as Lowe’s and Home Depot, sell extinguishers for a range of $20 to $50.
“We always ask people, ‘What is your life worth?,’” he said.
He also warned that those who are inebriated or sleepy should avoid handling food because of a declined sense of focus and alertness. Although some may feel up to the task in spite of their state, he described an occurrence of setting food to warm up on the stove and people accidentally falling asleep on the couch while waiting. Once your body is tired, you cannot control it, he said.
As houses get busy and chaotic during the holidays, Jennings said some of the most frequent causes of kitchen fires are people leaving a rag or oven mitt too close to a flame or heat, or improperly disposing of oil and grease after cooking.
“You put hot grease in the garbage, and you can walk away, and it might not ignite for 30 minutes to an hour,” he said. “You walk away and watch TV with your family, then later on you smell smoke … you put paper and anything in there, it could ignite later on.”
For those with children in the vicinity, Jennings suggested people turn in pots’ and pans’ handles toward the stove to avoid them grabbing the scorching materials.
In place of tying a string on one’s finger to prevent forgetfulness, Jennings recommended people take a rag, oven mitt or even a cooking utensil with them when they leave the room.
“Little things like taking a cooking spoon and putting it in your pocket to let you know. So when you’re walking around the house, you feel it and wonder, ‘Hey, why do I have this spoon in my pocket?’” he said.
To the fire department, small and simple reminders lead to avoiding life and death situations for households.
With these tips in mind, Jennings said he hopes the community has a little more awareness and pay extra close attention when preparing food to help reduce fires.
“At schools they do fire drills all the time, but how many people do fire drills at home? Probably nobody,” he said. “Most fire deaths happen at home; that’s something I think the community needs to take in mind … we’ve never really had fire deaths at school, so your mind kind of gets complacent.”
As people begin to purchase decor and put up trees, he warns to keep live trees thoroughly hydrated as unwatered plants can catch fire and burn in seconds. Do everything possible to keep the tree cool and the trunk as damp as possible, he said.
Additional safety tips included:
- Wear short, close fitted or tightly rolled sleeves
- Keep cooking equipment clean
- Never leave your stove unattended while cooking
If an uncontrollable fire breaks out in a home, Jennings said to immediately call the fire department and do not hesitate to get to safety.
“That’s what we’re here for,” he said.
He continued, “There’s no such thing as a hero. I know people push that but get out. Anything in your house is not worth your life. Saving the TV, saving the couch, saving pictures is not worth your life … you cannot be replaced.”
Liz Wright is a staff writer covering education and general assignments for The Augusta Press. Reach her at liz@theaugustapress.com
