Industry Magazine Commercial Kitchen Fall 2016 | Page 30

FIRE PREVENTION

FIRE PREVENTION IN
COMMERCIAL KITCHENS:
Eight Fire Prevention Tips

FIRES in commercial kitchens are always a threat and can
have potentially devastating effects on business. There is
a very high fire risk associated with professional cooking
environments. The potential for accidents is great in this fastpaced, highly pressured environment. Combine that with large
volumes of flammable cooking oil, open flames, and other heat
sources? You have a recipe for disaster!

How To Reduce The Fire Risk In Restaurants And
Commercial Kitchens
A kitchen fire can start in an instant and take hold very
quickly. Because fires caused by cooking have high injury rates,
it’s important to take steps to reduce the likelihood of a fire
breaking out in order to keep employees and visitors safe. If
you’re a restaurant owner or work in a commercial kitchen, here
are some practical steps you can take to protect yourself and
prevent fires.

1. Always Follow The Manufacturer’s Instructions
In kitchens, there is inevitably a lot of equipment that
could potentially be dangerous if poorly installed, misused,
or abused. Cooking equipment, such as ovens and deep fat
fryers, must be properly installed and used in accordance with
the manufacturer’s recommendations. Also, don’t cut corners
when it comes to maintenance. Looking after your equipment is
essential to ensuring safety in the kitchen.

2. Be Extra Careful With Deep Fat Fryers
Deep fat fryers, commonly used in fast-food outlets and
restaurants, are a common cause of kitchen fires. Overfilling
them can lead to the oil being ignited and going up in flames.
Once started, the fire can spread very quickly, causing serious
risk of injury and even death. Take care to fill deep fat fryers to
the appropriate level and never leave them unattended when in
use.

3. Remote Power Shutdown In An Emergency
Passive fire protection is an important tool to prevent fires
as well as aiding attempts to contain fires and make work areas
safe. If a fire starts, it’s crucial that the power or gas supply is
able to be shutdown remotely to make the situation safer for
firefighters and avert a potentially bigger disaster.

4. All Surfaces Should Be Kept Clean And Tidy
It probably goes without saying that a kitchen should be
clean, but special attention must be paid to keep areas free of

FALL 2016

oil and grease. Buildup of grease inside cookers and oven tops
can lead to a fire, so regular cleaning of ovens and equipment is
essential.
In general, a commercial kitchen should be a tidy environment
without any clutter that could block exits or prevent escape
in the event of an emergency. All used cooking oil should be
disposed of properly and not left on the premises for longer
than necessary.

5. Ensure Kitchen Staff Wears Appropriate Clothing
In commercial kitchens, all staff should be very familiar with
this basic safety rule. But in smaller establishments, this rule
may be less strictly regulated. Loose clothing should not be
worn while cooking, sleeves must be rolled up, and long hair
should be tied back. Aprons are ideal for keeping clothes away
from flames.

6. Never Leave Cooking Unattended
The golden rule in preventing both domestic and nondomestic
kitchen fires is to always pay attention to what you are doing. In
a busy commercial kitchen, this may not always be easy. Kitchen
timers can be really useful in alerting chefs when food is ready
and avoiding food being left in ovens for longer than it should.
If, for any reason, cooking must be left alone, it’s important
that staff is instructed to turn off appliances and take pans off
the heat. Even if you think that you’ll only be away for a moment,
it’s better to be safe than sorry.

7. Make Sure The Premise Is Secured At Night
As we all know how easy it is to forget to turn the oven off, it’s
important that at the end of each day, a final check is carried
out to ensure that all cooking appliances and equipment are
properly switched off. Ideally, this would be the responsibility
of the owner or the last person to leave at night. Creating a
checklist for staff is a good idea to ensure the premise is secure.

8. Have Firefighting Equipment On Hand
If your best attempts to prevent a fire from starting in a
kitchen fail, then having the right equipment to extinguish any
flames can make the different between an inconvenient mess
and a business ruined. Special Class K fire extinguishers for
cooking fires are essential equipment for commercial kitchens.
All staff should be trained in the proper use of firefighting
equipment and taught when a fire can be dealt with safely and
when it’s best to get out.

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