Fire safety is at the forefront of all of our minds at the moment, particularly following the horrific Grenfell Tower tragedy. As we have seen, fire can have devastating effects, causing death and serious injury to innocent victims.
Fire safety is vitally important and we must act now to help prevent accidents in the home and safeguard the health and wellbeing of our families. In this article, we therefore focus on fire safety in the home, bringing you advice on how to prevent a fire, as well as the safety procedures to follow in the unfortunate event of a fire.
The government’s ‘Fire Kills’ safety campaign states that you are four times more likely to die in a fire if you don’t have a smoke alarm that works; and around half of home fires are caused by cooking accidents. The following precautions should therefore be taken:
- Never leave children alone in the kitchen when cooking on the hob! Make sure that pan handles are not sticking out and that other appliances, such as the kettle or toaster, are out of reach.
- Be careful if wearing loose clothing and keep tea towels away from the oven and hob.
- According to RoSPA, cooking food by deep-frying is acknowledged as dangerous. Around 16,000 domestic fires every year start when food, often chips, is being deep fried and about 3,000 people a year are injured. It is safer to use a thermostatically controlled electric deep fat fryer, or to cook chips in the oven. If a pan catches fire, turn off the heat if it is safe to do so. NEVER throw water over the burning pan.
- Statistics from the ‘Fire Kills’ safety campaign state that faulty electrics cause around 6,000 fires in the home across the country every year. To avoid electrical fires, always ensure that appliances have a British or European safety mark. Don’t overload sockets and always check for faulty wiring. Unplugging appliances helps to reduce the risk of fire.
- Smoke alarms can save lives! Always fit approved smoke alarms on each floor of your home. Ten-year sealed battery smoke alarms are recommended.
- Plan your escape route and discuss this with family members. Make sure exits are kept clear and keep door and window keys in a place where they can easily be found.
- Finally, if a fire starts – get out, stay out and dial 999 to call the fire service out.
The information contained in this article has been created for marketing purposes and is not official guidance and should not be used as a substitute for official food safety, health & safety nor fire safety advice.
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“Calibri W01 Light”;color:#5F5F5D”>Food Alert take no responsibility if the information in the article is used to form part of a safety management system or used to form part of any legal or regulatory compliance for your business. For official guidance and to engage with Food Alert services please do call our team on 020 7244 1900 or email
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