February 7, 2014 15:00
We hope our locals are marking Burn Awareness Week by performing community outreach and education on how injuries can be prevented.
Over 500,000 people in the United States and Canada receive medical treatment for burn injuries each year.
Most burns occur in the home usually in the kitchen or bathroom. No one understands better than fire fighters that burns can leave scars that last a lifetime and painful emotional wounds.
Hopefully these tips will be enough to help save someone in your community from injury:
When cooking in the kitchen please remain in the kitchen. Roll up your sleeves and avoid wearing loose-fitting clothing that can easily catch fire. Always turn pot handles inward to prevent an accident. Do not reach over burners and other hot surfaces.
Also share the following:
• Turn heated foods with steam (whether it is on the stove, boiling, a bag of popcorn) away from you at all times
• Stand back from hot grease and boiling liquids, including water. These liquids can spatter and burn you
• Be careful when draining hot pasta or pouring hot liquids like soup from a pot into a bowl. A splatter of boiling water, hot soup, or hot oil can burn you.
• Never touch the stovetop with your bare hand.
• Always use oven mitts
• Be careful if you have young kids in your kitchen area. Test the temperature of the food before you give it to them
The IAFF offers numerous resources for affiliates interested in burn safety campaigns.
For more information, contact Tom Flamm, IAFF Burn Coordinator.
You can also visit the IAFF Foundation for more information: http://www.iafffoundation.org/causes/burn-fund/prevention-education