Fire Safety Do's & Dont's for Outdoor Grilling

Grilling Safety Tips You Need To Know: MyFoxLA.com

Summer is a time for family, fun, food and fire.

Yes, fire.

With more than 6,000 fires from grills and BBQ's reported each year you need to be smart about cooking out. Whether you're flipping burgers over charcoal briquettes or you're grilling game over gas -you want to be safe from the start.

Here are some of the tips I shared on KTTV/Fox 11 Good Day LA to help you stay safe:

In the event of a fire cooler heads must prevail. Resist the urge to throw flour on the flames because it will ignite the cloud of dust to grow the fire even larger.

And, although it may be tempting to try to put a cooking fire out with water, don't. The water will spread a typical cooking fire and adding flare-up to the fire could be more dangerous than the fire itself.

The very safest and smartest way to kill a fire is to extinguish it. Every kitchen and bar-b-que area needs a compact fire extinguisher. Each time you prepare for a BBQ be sure to have it handy .

Every 30 minutes someone is burned in the US. If there is a fire that causes you to suffer a burn it's important for you to remain calm while working as quickly as possible to stop the burning and relieve any pain.

Perhaps you grew up seeing someone put unusual things on burns, but I would caution you to avoid applying anything to a burn that could cause re-injury rather than relief.


Burn Care Dont’s:

• Don’t Apply Food (i.e. Mustard, Honey, Mayonnaise) Burns are open wounds.
• Don’t Apply Grease Based Products. (i.e. Butter, Toothpaste, Vaseline) it drives the burn deeper.
• Don’t put ice on a burn because it will cause more damage to the burned tissue.
• Don’t try to peel clothes from the wound because it will pull on the skin and re-injure the wound.
• Don't Pop Blisters because it will work against your bodies attempt to heal itself and may cause infection.

Now that you know what not to do when tending to a burn, follow these 3 C's instead to take care of yourself in the best way possible:

Burn Care Do’s:

1. Cool - Do rinse with water
2. Cover - Do apply Burn Gel and cover with dry Sterile Dressing
3. Continue care - Do See a Health Care Professional

Remember, if you can eat it, don't put it on a burn. A burn is an open wound.


Be prepared. Be smart. Be safe.