The American Red Cross reports, on average, there is a 400% increase in home fires on Thanksgiving.
Executive director of the Red Cross’ Salt Lake Chapter, Jeremiah Lafranca said the key to a safe holiday is to pay attention.
“You have pot handles hanging off, things of that nature. People aren't paying attention,” he said. “So if you're not keeping kids and pets far enough away, people tend to trip up. We have people getting burned by those pot handles, we see a lot of injuries going into hospitals with that.”
And Lafranca said many of the injuries and fires are avoidable.
“Some silly things that we see are people trying to deep fry a turkey in the garage,” he said on KPCW’s “Local News Hour” Wednesday. “They suddenly put in a frozen turkey, the flames start to kick up, they're too close.”
If you’re frying your turkey this year, he says to make sure the turkey is completely thawed before placing it in the fryer, never fry a turkey inside or on a wooden deck and never leave a deep fryer unattended.
The American Red Cross said about five people die every year deep-frying turkeys. The cooking method also accounts for about 60 injuries and more than $15 million in property damage annually.
