Cooking and BBQing safety social media toolkit

Messages to share

These key messages have been formatted to be used in a post. Copy and paste them, or use them to complement your own message.

• Keep an eye on what you fry. Most cooking fires start when someone is frying food
• Watch what you are cooking. Fires start when the heat is too high. If you see any smoke or the grease starts to boil, turn the burner off
• Make sure you are awake and alert while cooking. Alcohol and some drugs can make you sleepy
• Wear short sleeves or roll them up so they don’t catch on fire
• Make sure children and pets stay at least 1 metre away from a hot stove
• Turn pot handles toward the back of the stove so no one can bump them or pull them over
• Keep things that can catch fire, like oven mitts, wooden utensils, food packaging, towels, away from the stove
• Never pour water on a cooking pan grease fire! Smother the flames by sliding a lid over the pan and turn off the stove

Hashtags

#FireSafety #FirePrevention #CookingSafety #HolidayBaking

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• Reduce the risk of cooking fires by being alert. You may not be fully alert if you are tired, drowsy or impaired by alcohol, cannabis, other drugs or certain medications.
• Stay in the kitchen when you are frying, grilling, or broiling food. If you leave the kitchen for even a short period of time, turn off the stove.
• If you are simmering, baking, roasting, or boiling food, check it regularly, remain in the home while food is cooking, and use a timer to remind you that you’re cooking.
• Keep things that can catch fire — potholders, oven mitts, paper or plastic bags, curtains — away from your stove top.
• Wear short, close-fitting or tightly rolled sleeves when cooking. Loose clothing can dangle onto stove burners and can catch fire if it comes in contact with a gas flame or electric burner.
• Have a “kid-free zone” of at least 1 metre around the stove and areas where hot food or drink is prepared or carried.
• Open microwaved food slowly, away from the face. Hot steam from a container of microwaved food or the food itself can cause burns.
• Never heat a baby bottle in a microwave oven because it heats liquids unevenly. Heat baby bottles in warm water.
• Treat a burn right away, putting it in cool water. Cool the burn for three to five minutes. Cover with a clean, dry cloth. If the burn is bigger than your fist, or if you have any questions, get medical help right away.

If you have a small grease or oven cooking fire:

• On the stove top, smother the flames by sliding a lid over the pan and turning off the burner. Leave the pan covered until it is completely cooled.
• Never pour water or use a fire extinguisher on a cooking pan grease fire!
• For an oven fire, turn off the heat and keep the door closed. After a fire, the oven should be checked and/or serviced before being used again.

If you have any doubt, get out!

• When you leave, close the door behind you to help contain the fire.
• Call 911 or your local emergency number from outside your home.

How to use this toolkit

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Messages to share

These key messages have been formatted to be used in a post. Copy and paste them, or use them to complement your own message.

• Never leave a hot grill unattended!
• Clean the grill's grease tray regularly to avoid it catching on fire
• Never pour water on a BBQ grease fire! Use a fire extinguisher or baking soda, or check the BBQ manufacturer's instructions
• Only use propane, charcoal and wood pellet BBQs outside. Using them indoors can cause a fire or carbon monoxide poisoning
• Only grill outdoors, away from siding and deck railings, and away from eaves and branches
• Check with your landlord, building manager or strata before using a grill on a balcony of your apartment building

Hashtags

#FireSafety #FirePrevention #BBQsafety #GrillingSafety 

Download and use the graphics below, either by themselves or add additional information in your post to reinforce the message.