Red Cross provides kitchen safety tips to enjoy your feast
RALEIGH, Nov. 20, 2017 – Thanksgiving is almost here – a special time to spend with friends and family, to share, relax, laugh, and, of course, eat! When preparing your Thanksgiving feast, it’s important to include safety on the menu, keeping your home and guests happy and healthy.
“Holiday gatherings with family and friends mean lots of good food and lots of cooking,” said Barry Porter, regional CEO of the Red Cross in Eastern NC. “The Red Cross wants to remind everyone to keep the kitchen a safe place.”
Important safety tips to remember:
• Make sure your smoke alarms are working before you start cooking.
• Keep young children and pets at least three feet away from the stove.
• Don’t wear loose clothing or sleeves that dangle while cooking.
• Don’t let pot handles stick out from the stove, keep them turned inward.
• If deep-frying a turkey, keep your fryer outside the house and away from buildings and other flammable materials. Do not overfill it with oil.
• If you’re cooking on the stove or using a fryer, never leave them unattended. If you’re simmering, baking, roasting or broiling food, check the oven regularly.
• Keep anything that can catch fire - pot holders, oven mitts, wooden utensils, paper or plastic bags, food packaging, and towels or curtains — away from your stove, oven or any other appliance that generates heat.
• Make sure to turn off stoves, ovens, fryers and other appliances when finished using them. Set timers to keep track of extended cooking times.
• Always check the kitchen before going to bed or leaving the home to make sure all stoves, ovens, and cooking appliances are turned off.
6. Use extra caution if driving. The youngsters are excited and may forget to look both ways
before crossing.
IF A COOKING FIRE OCCURS If a pan catches fire, don’t move it. Slide a pan lid or cookie sheet on top of the pan to put out the fire. Turn off the heat. Keep the lid on the pan until it cools. Never try to stop a grease or oil fire with water – it will fuel the fire.
If something catches fire in the oven, keep the door closed. Call 9-1-1 so firefighters can make sure the fire didn’t spread to the walls. If a fire occurs in the microwave, keep the door closed and unplug the microwave if you can. Don’t use it again until a repairman checks it.
If the kitchen catches fire, make sure everyone gets out and call 9-1-1 when outside. Once outside, stay out. Never go back inside a burning building.
RED CROSS APPS People can download the all-inclusive Red Cross Emergency app which combines more than 35 emergency alerts to help keep the user safe. And there is a special mobile app - Monster Guard - designed for kids, teaching them to prepare for emergencies at home by playing an engaging game. Users can find the apps in smartphone app stores by searching for the American Red Cross or going to redcross.org/apps.
For more information, please contact Brittany Jennings at (910) 512-3359 or email brittany.jennings2@redcross.org.
About the American Red Cross:
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies about 40 percent of the nation's blood; teaches skills that save lives; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a not-for-profit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or visit us on Twitter at @RedCross.
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