This is Fire Prevention Week across North America.  The theme this year is “Serve Up Fire Safety in the Kitchen” which encourages everyone to stay safe when cooking.

Cooking is the leading cause of fires in Regina for the last decade with more than 1,900 cooking alarm calls being dealt with by Regina Fire in the last four years alone.   This has resulted in the loss of homes, painful burn-related injuries and endangering the community.

The city is saying you can protect yourself and your family by following these important fire safe behaviours:

• Stay in the kitchen when cooking. Turn off the burner if you must leave the kitchen, even for a very short time.
• Cook with a large lid handy. If a small grease fire starts, slide the lid over the pan and turn off the burner. Let the pan cool.
• Keep items that can catch fire, like towels, potholders and food wrappers, away from the stovetop.
• Don’t let children or pets play near the stove when cooking.

“The number one reason for cooking fires in our community is because individuals become distracted when cooking or leave the stove unattended,” says Regina Fire Chief Layne Jackson. “For that reason, we implore everyone to stay in the kitchen and look while you cook.”

For more safe cooking tips, check out Regina.ca/fire.