Deadly and dangerous cooking-related house fires are twice as likely to occur on Thanksgiving Day in the U.S. as on other days of the year. And these Thanksgiving Day house fires are generally also more costly and more deadly than other house fires. For some people, Black Friday may have nothing to do with retailers being in the black on this day. Black Friday might represent the color of their burned down home after a resentful frying turkey decided to get its revenge.
But if you’re at home today on this day after Thanksgiving and you didn’t have a turkey day house fire yesterday, then you can take heart from the fact that Black Friday has the lowest occurrence of cooking-related house fires in the year. Probably because we all have so many delicious leftovers from yesterday that require nothing more than a quick moment or two in the microwave. And anyone not home munching on leftovers is likely fighting the crowds at major Black Friday sales events.
Deep-frying a Thanksgiving Day turkey presents the most prominent cause of turkey day cooking fires and explosions. A large proportion of the dangerous turkey fryers used to fry these birds don’t even have thermometers. So you can’t necessarily tell if the gallons of cooking oil inside are overheated and about to explode. Oil can quickly expand when it’s heated to the necessarily high temperatures, so adding a little too much oil can also cause catastrophe as the fryer boils over and starts a blaze. The insurance-related Underwriters Lab that tests product safety wisely refuses to give their seal of approval to turkey fryers. Too many reported injuries and fires result from these deep-fry machines.
An average Thanksgiving Day sees almost 4,500 house fires, about twice the usual number in a day. On a normal day, almost 25% of fires are residential, but on Thanksgiving Day, that percentage leaps to 35%. Almost 85% of these Thanksgiving Day house fires start in the oven or on the stove. These house fires claim more lives than fires on other days and cost about 25% more in property damage.
If you’ve come safely through Thanksgiving Day without a house fire or a DWI-related accident (another statistic that jumps on the holiday), count your blessings and give thanks. And use this moment to reflect on the safety precautions that got you safely through this surprisingly dangerous holiday. And keep those safety precautions in mind for future days. Your safety consciousness can help ensure that you and your family enjoy many safe and festive Thanksgiving Days to come.