Thanksgiving Fire Safety Tips

From Osage Nation Emergency Management

Did you know Thanksgiving is the peak day for home cooking fires? To ensure home fire safety, please keep these tips in mind.

“STAND BY YOUR PAN”
WHEN COOKING THIS THANKSGIVING

Turkey
If you are roasting your turkey, make sure you set a timer. If you are frying your turkey:
- Use a fryer with thermostat controls. This will ensure the oil does not become overheated.
- Thaw your turkey completely. Ice on the bird will cause the oil to splatter.
- Don’t overfill the pot with oil. If you do, the oil will overflow when you add the turkey causing a fire hazard.
- Keep children and pets at least three feet away from the fryer.
- Also, always use the fryer outdoors; never on a deck or in the garage; and keep the fryer a safe distance from the home and other buildings.

Stuffing and Potatoes
- Stand by your stove when you are boiling your potatoes or frying onions for stuffing.
- Stay in the kitchen when you are frying, boiling or broiling. If you are in the kitchen, it is easier to catch spills or hazardous conditions before they become a fire.

Vegetables and Other Dishes
- Keep the area around the stove clear of packaging, paper towels, and dishcloths; anything that can burn.
- Be sure to clean up any spills as they happen.
- Be prepared. Keep a large pan lid or baking sheet handy in case you need to smother a pan fire.
- Turn pot handles towards the back of the stove so you don’t bump them.

For more home cooking fire safety tips, visit
www.usfa.fema.gov​
www.nfpa.org/Public-Education/By-topic/Seasonal-fires/Thanksgiving-safe…