Flashback to the very first day our family moved to the Tri-Cities, we were astonished to see a huge house fire only a couple miles from our home. We ended up attending church with the family and witnessed the devastation that this brought to their family. We are happy to know that they are now back in their newly rebuilt home again, a year later. Our family has seen so many more fires here than anywhere else we have lived, including especially traumatic home fires. Due to the very arid climate we live in, this fire prevention week is even more critical to the safety of the families in our community.
In a fire, mere seconds can mean the difference between a safe escape and a tragedy! So take some time every October during Fire Prevention Week to make sure your family knows how to stay safe in case of a fire.
On Thursday, October 12, 2023, from 4pm to 7pm, Benton County Fire District No. 1 and the Kennewick Fire Department will be hosting a Fire Prevention Week Open House at its joint Fire Training Facility at 1811 S. Ely St. in Kennewick.
This FREE event will feature activities and displays including:
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This year’s Fire Prevention Week campaign is: Cooking safety starts with YOU!
- Watch What You Heat!
- The leading cause of fires in the kitchen is unattended cooking.
- Stay in the kitchen when you are frying, boiling, grilling, or broiling food. Turn off the burner if you leave the kitchen for any reason.
- If you are simmering, baking, or roasting food, check it regularly and stay in the home. Use a timer to remind you that you are cooking.
- Keep anything that can catch fire–oven mitts, wooden utensils, food packaging, towels, curtains–away from your stovetop.
- Keep the stovetop, burners, and oven clean.
- 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 an electric burner.
- Keep things that can catch fire away from heat sources. Never use your oven or microwave as storage space. This can cause a fire.
- What to Do If You Have a Cooking Fire:
- Always keep a lid nearby when you are cooking. If a small grease fire starts in a pan, smother the flames by sliding the lid over the pan. Turn off the burner. Do not move the pan. To keep the fire from restarting, leave the lid on until the pan has cooled.
- Never pour water on a cooking pan grease fire.
- Only trained adults should use a fire extinguisher on a grease fire. Only Class K fire extinguishers are rated for the purpose of putting out grease and animal fat fires.
- In case of an oven fire, turn off the heat and keep the door closed until it is cool.
- Only open the door once you are confident the fire is completely out, standing to the side as you open the oven door.
- After a fire, the oven should be checked by a licensed professional and/or serviced before being used again.
- When in doubt, just get out! When you leave, close the door behind you to help contain the fire. After you leave, call 9-1-1 or the fire department from a mobile phone or a trusted neighbor’s phone."
