Why Are There So Many Kitchen Appliance Fires in September? ... Gyeonggi-do Fire Department Analyzes Causes

[Asia Economy (Suwon) = Reporter Lee Young-gyu] The Gyeonggi-do Fire and Disaster Headquarters has urged residents to be cautious of fires caused by cooking appliances such as gas ranges ahead of the Chuseok holiday in September.

According to the Gyeonggi Fire Headquarters on the 18th, an average of 601 fires occurred in Gyeonggi-do during the month of September, which includes the Chuseok holiday, over the past 10 years.

Regarding the causes of ignition, negligence accounted for 292 cases, making up 41% of the total, the highest number. This was followed by electrical causes with 161 cases (27%) and mechanical causes with 86 cases (14%).

Notably, the proportion of fires occurring during food preparation was higher compared to other months, drawing attention. This is interpreted as being due to increased use of indoor and outdoor kitchen appliances and fire sources during the Chuseok holiday for preparing holiday foods.

In fact, during this period, negligent fires such as cigarette butts (average 93 cases in September vs. 126 cases monthly), unattended fire sources (24 cases in September vs. 46 cases monthly), and garbage burning (19 cases in September vs. 39 cases monthly) decreased compared to usual. However, fires caused by food preparation averaged 59 cases in September, exceeding the monthly average of 49 cases.

By ignition device, fires caused by kitchen appliances numbered 64 cases, higher than the monthly average of 55 cases. In particular, among kitchen appliances, gas range fires averaged 34 cases in September, surpassing the monthly average of 27 cases.

Accordingly, the Gyeonggi Fire Headquarters plans to actively inform residents ahead of this September’s Chuseok holiday to ▲ unplug power cords that have not been used for a long time ▲ check for any exposed wiring on cooking appliances before use ▲ avoid simultaneous use of home appliances and kitchen devices ▲ not leave frying or other cooking unattended and avoid prolonged heating.