According to a recent story in the Wall Street Journal, an estimated five Americans are treated in an ER every hour for burns, scalds and related injuries from hot or poorly installed stoves. Important: most of the injuries could have been prevented with proper education about child safety gates, proper cooking clothing and installation information. A study conducted over 21 years showed that almost one million stove injuries were recorded with more than half in women.
English Cooking Show Needs a Guardian III!
A UK cooking how host almost burned down her own set in an episode of “Come Dine With Me in Northamptonshire.” Lauren Oxlade was showing off her skills when she left her oven mitts too close to the flames. ” According to reports, “She went into the evening hoping her passion for cooking and ‘burning’ desire to win would bag her the £1,000 cash prize.
Paul Rouse, with GuardianSSI said, “The Guardian is designed to detect and extinguish cooking fires and prevent re-ignition in private homes, apartments, senior housing, college campuses, hospitals and even TV production locations!” Even older kitchens can be retrofitted.
Read more:
Fire Prevention Week Wrap Up
As a nice wrap up to Fire Prevention Week with an emphasis on preventing kitchen fires, The Nap Time Reviewer posted a wonderful blog article by our own Paul Rouse about the dangers of hotel and motel fires. Every year there are almost 4,000 hotel and motel fires reported to U.S. fire departments, resulting in $76 million in property loss, according to the U.S. Fire Administration. Almost 50 percent of these fires are started by cooking. Since Paul started in the fire prevention business years ago, many positive changes have been made to make hotel and motel kitchens safer, but fires still do happen.
Here on the blog are five tips travelers can take to protect themselves.
It’s Fire Prevention Week: Stop Cooking Fires
Paul Rouse, Administrative Officer/Sales & Operations Director for Guardian Safety Solutions International, Inc. and fire suppression educator and expert, joined eHealth Radio and the Safety Channel for an interview about Fire Prevention Week. You can hear the whole podcast here and learn more. Some important items were discussed, including:
- Cooking can easily start a fire on the stove top – how can we prevent them?
- What are some typical causes of cooking fires?
- How does our guardian system work?
- What are some tips for listeners to prevent cooking fires?
Cooking Fire Displaces Texas Family of Four
News from FOX44 – Temple, Texas…
A Monday evening cooking fire has left a family of four homeless. Temple Fire & Rescue responded the fire Monday, in the 2400 Block of Valley Forge Avenue. The first Engine Company arrived to find moderate smoke coming from a downstairs apartment of a four unit apartment complex. Firefighters confirmed everyone was out of the apartment as they began an interior attack. Due to the potential for fire spreading to the other three apartment units and as a precaution, the incident commander requested a second alarm assignment sending two additional Engine companies and one Rescue Company on the call.
Fire investigation determined the fire was unintentional and started from unattended cooking. One of the adults cooking became distracted and forgot to turn off the stove prior to leaving the apartment. The kitchen sustained heavy fire damage with the living room, bedrooms and bathroom receiving smoke and heat damage. A dollar loss has not been calculated. The apartment was protected by working smoke alarms. There were no injuries. The American Red Cross is working with the two adults and two children to assist with their immediate needs
#1 Cause of Fires in Springfield Cooking Related
“The number one cause of fires in Springfield is unattended cooking,” said Dennis Leger, aide to Commissioner Joseph Conant in Springfield, MA this week. According to a MassLive.com article, a cooking fire caused some $15,000 in damage to a home when shortly before 3 a.m., a resident dropped frozen French fries into a hot pan of oil on the stove. Moisture in the French fries caused the oil to froth and spill over onto the burner, igniting the blaze. Sadly two women, one aged 65 and one 34, lost their lives recently in the same area because of cooking related fires. In addition to having a fire extinguisher and knowing how to use it, a range top suppression system like ours at GSSI would save lives and property from cooking fires. To learn more, follow us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/GuardianSSI.
Get Ready for Fire Prevention Week October 6 – 12!
WDEL-AM Delaware reports that the Office of the State Fire Marshal said that an apartment building fire that caused dozens to be displaced started in a third-floor kitchen. Officials say cooking materials on the stove top ignited, burning one man severely and causing $1 million in damages.
This is one of many fires each year and is why we observe Fire Prevention Week from October 6-12 joining forces with the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) to teach everyone how to prevent kitchen fires.
Guardian SSI will be spreading the word about the dangers of kitchen fires most of which result from unattended cooking. NFPA reports cooking is the leading cause of home fires and home fire-related injuries.
You can prevent cooking fires by:
- Staying in the kitchen when you are cooking.
- When you cook, wear sleeveless clothing or with tight-fitting sleeves.
- Keep potholders, oven mitts, wooden utensils, paper and plastic bags, drapes and towels away from your stovetop.
- Clean food and grease off burners and stovetops.
- Have a fire extinguisher close by and learn how to use it!
More information will be coming as we get closer to Fire Prevention Week.
Think Before You Cook – Advice from Albany Fire Dept.
The Albany Fire Department has some wise advice for those of you who love to cook..pay close attention and think before you cook. This year alone, the Department had 124 structure fires – 56 were kitchen fires.
Cooking Can Be Hazardous to College Life
According to “I’ll Miss You Too: An Off-to-College Guide for Parents and Students,” some of the biggest parental fears surrounding sending kids off to college focus on safety issues. While safety is a top priority, fear of kitchen fires probably ranks well below safety concerns about drugs, alcohol, crime and other campus issues. According to Guardian Safety Solutions International (www.guardianssi.com), college fires should move up to the top of parents and university housing concerns since 72 percent of college campus fires are cooking related. Cooking fires also cause more than $25 million in damages to college campuses each year. Read more at HealthNewsDigest http://www.healthnewsdigest.com/news/Safety_310/Cooking-Can-Be-Hazardous-to-College-Life.shtml.
Guardian to Exhibit at National Association of State Fire Marshals Conference
We are exhibiting at the National Association of State Fire Marshals 2013 Conference, August 7 – 9, at the Indianapolis Marriott Downtown (booth #4). We are excited to demonstrate our ‘Guardian Solution’ range top fire suppression system that protects against a range top fire before it causes property damage or injuries, and believe that the conference is critical in helping to maximize the impact of fire prevention and safety through education. Fire Marshals are responsible for fire safety code adoption and enforcement, fire and arson investigation, fire incident data reporting and analysis, public education and advising Governors and State Legislatures on fire protection. It’s an important audience for GSSI.
Be sure to “Like” Guardian on Facebook at Fire Prevention News www.facebook.com/GuardianSSI and follow on Twitter @GuardianSSI.
