30% of Lancashire Cooking Fires Caused by Home Distractions, Warns LFRS

Lancashire Fire & Rescue Service (LFRS) is urging residents of Lancashire to pay attention and "Stay there and cook it" in a new campaign to reduce the number of cooking-related fires in the county. According to research conducted by the fire and rescue service, distractions are a major cause of cooking fires, with 30% of such incidents in Lancashire in 2022 being caused by distractions in the home.

It's easy to get distracted while cooking - a phone call, a misbehaving pet, or helping your children with their homework - but these distractions can have disastrous consequences. Cooking-related fires are the most common type of fires in people's homes that LFRS attends, with around half of all accidental house fires being caused by cooking. In 2022, LFRS attended 382 cooking-related fires, with 117 of these caused by distractions.

To reduce the number of cooking fires in the county, LFRS is asking people to stay in the kitchen while they're cooking and pay attention to what they're doing. By keeping your focus on the task at hand, you can help prevent distractions from causing a fire. "Stay there and cook it" is a simple message that LFRS hopes will raise awareness of the dangers of cooking fires and help to reduce the

Liam Wilson, Group Manager and Prevention lead at Lancashire Fire and Rescue Service explains “our data highlights that cooking fires are a risk for everyone. However, taking simple precautions can significantly decrease the likelihood of a fire occurring in your home. These precautions involve being present in the kitchen while cooking, avoiding distractions, and maintaining a clean and uncluttered cooking area. Additionally, it is crucial to have functioning smoke alarms installed in your home and to be aware of the appropriate actions to take in case of a fire: get out, stay out, and call the fire service."

LFRS is hoping to see this figure reduce in 2023. By paying attention to their cooking and avoiding distractions, residents of Lancashire can help to prevent cooking-related fires and keep their homes and families safe.

For further advice and guidance on fire safety in the home, including cooking safety, please visit: www.lancsfirerescue.org.uk/staythere