Crews extinguish kitchen fire
Crews were called to a fire in Wivenhoe last night, when a toaster caught alight set fire to the kitchen cabinets.
When crews arrived, they confirmed that the kitchen was full of smoke.
Firefighters from Wivenhoe and Colchester worked quickly together to extinguish the fire by 9:26pm.
Watch Manager Alex Hough said: “The crews did a great job to contain the fire and prevent additional damage to the property.
“I’d also like to praise the family, as soon as they heard the smoke alarm and saw the fire, they shut the door to the kitchen, went outside and called 999. This was the right thing to do.
“Smoke alarms will alert you to the first signs of fire in your home. We’re urging everyone to make sure they have at least one working smoke alarm on every level of their homes, and to test them at least once a month.”
The fire occurred during the National Fire Chiefs Council's (NFCC) Cooking Safety Month, which aims to educate the public about kitchen and cooking fire safety.
Follow our advice and be safe when cooking with electrical items:
- Check toasters are clean and placed away from curtains and kitchen rolls.
- Keep electric leads and appliances away from water and unplug them when you're finished to avoid pets and children accidentally switching them on
- Keep the microwave, oven, hob and grill clean and in good working order. A build-up of fat and grease can ignite a fire
- Place slow cookers on flat, heat-proof, stable surfaces and make sure there's enough liquid so it doesn't burn dry.
- Don't plug air fryers into extension leads and don't overfill them
- Be careful when buying second hand - get the appliance checked over if you can. As a minimum check the wires and don't use the appliance if it smells funny when it's switched on - older appliances often don't meet modern electrical safety regulations
- Don't ignore your electric or fuse tripping. Tripping electric is a warning sign - work out what caused it to trip and get it checked out