Safety warning for Shrove Tuesday after cooking fires in several kitchens

It comes as a timely reminder of why it is important to be safe in the kitchen ahead of Shrove Tuesday, which falls tomorrow, where families will take to the kitchen together to make pancakes.

Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service is urging residents to never leave cooking unattended and to be particularly careful if there are children in the kitchen.

Crews attended several cooking fires over the weekend, including one on Milk Street in Tyldesley at 1.30pm on Sunday.

Three fire engines were called when a blaze broke out involving a grill pan and a cooker.

Other incidents across Greater Manchester included a pan of food on a cooker setting alight, a tea towel catching fire on an electric hob and an extractor fan covered in oil setting on fire.

Head of prevention, area manager Paul Duggan, said: “These incidents show just why it is so important to be careful in the kitchen. While nobody was seriously hurt, people did need treatment for smoke inhalation and property was damaged.

“That’s why we need everyone to be safe this Shrove Tuesday and whenever they are cooking. If you are making pancakes tomorrow, enjoy it but please never leave cooking unattended and if there are children around don’t get distracted by them and make sure you keep them away from the hob.

“We know most fires start in the kitchen so if you are safe there you can significantly reduce the risk of having one in your home.

“Please take this as a reminder to test your smoke alarm – doing so could save the lives of you and your family.”

Last week, the fire service revealed it attended 902 kitchen fires in 2020 – more than half of all accidental fires attended last year.

More advice for staying safe in the kitchen can be found hereThanks for reading. If you value what we do and are able to support us, a digital subscription is just £1 for your first month. Try us today by clicking here​