By: Ruby Ramirez

The evening of January 28 was routine for Gwendolyn Johnson of Jessup, Ga., as she put her 35-year-old son, who lives with down syndrome, to bed. That night, Gwendolyn did something nearly 70% of Americans are guilty of – she left a pot unattended on her stove, and that changed everything. 

"I can still see the flames," she recalled. "I was a little tired. I thought about cooking myself some fries and forgot the pot was on the stove."

When she realized what was happening, the 68-year old quickly ran to the kitchen and placed the burning pot next to the stove. Luckily, the apartment's sprinkler system went off, preventing the fire from spreading beyond her kitchen and to the neighboring units.

Gwendolyn and her son mainly lost appliances due to the water damage caused by the apartment's sprinkler system and says she's grateful no one got hurt because of the fire. 

In the days following the single-unit apartment fire, she decided to call the American Red Cross to see if the organization could help.

"My mind was going 90 miles per hour and thought to call the Red Cross. I didn't know if they would be able to help me out or not," she said.

After making that call, Red Cross disaster volunteers from Southeast Georgia quickly provided emergency assistance, which helps provide families experiencing disaster with lodging, food, and clothing.

"I was very surprised and overwhelmed by the help they were able to provide," she said. "The Red Cross helped me think better and not feel so alone," she added.

In addition to emergency assistance, the Red Cross shared resources and referrals to other agencies in the community to help the family regain their footing.

Three months after being displaced from their home, the family was able to move back into their apartment.

"In May, Gwendolyn called to say hello and to tell me she was back in her place and life was good for her and her son," said Timm Brown, the Red Cross caseworker who helped her begin the recovery process. "She wanted to thank me and the Red Cross again for all we did for them and said they would have never made it without us.”

Timm says he’s never had someone call him back [nearly] four months later just to say hi. “That meant a lot to me," he said. "Most often, we don't know how we touch lives, but we do."

According to the National Fire Protection Association, unattended cooking is the number one cause of home fires. To help keep you and your loved ones safe from home cooking fires, the Georgia Red Cross urges everyone to follow these safety tips: 

1. Keep an eye on what you fry! Never leave cooking food unattended. If you must leave the kitchen, even for a short period, turn off the stove.  
2. Move items that can burn away from the stove. This includes dishtowels, bags, boxes, paper, and curtains. Also, keep children and pets at least three feet away.
3. Avoid wearing loose clothing while cooking. 
4. When frying food, turn the burner off if you see smoke or if the grease starts to boil. Carefully remove the pan from the burner. 
5. Keep a pan lid or a cookie sheet nearby. Use it to cover the pan if it catches on fire. This will put out the fire. Leave the pan covered until it is completely cooled. 

Lastly, the American Red Cross encourages families to test their smoke alarms monthly and practice a two-minute fire escape plan. In most cases, families have less than two minutes to escape a burning home before it’s too late. 

Visit redcross.org/fire for more information, including an escape plan to practice with your family.