- Author
- U.S. Fire Administration | National Fire Data Center
- Title
- Structure Cooking Fires.
- Coporate
- U.S. Fire Administration, Washington, DC National Fire Data Center, Washington, DC
- Journal
- Topical Fire Research Series, Vol. 5, No. 6, 1-4, August 2005
- Keywords
- fire statistics | fire data | cooking | structures | fire losses | ignition | fire alarm systems
- Identifiers
- 2002 loss measures for cooking fires; 2002 causes of structure fires and structure fire losses; 2002 cooking fires by property type; 2002 time of day of structure cooking fires and injuries; 2002 smoke alarm status in structure cooking fires
- Abstract
- Findings: **Cooking is the leading cause of fires and fire injuries in structures. Deaths and property lossess due to cooking, however, are among the lowest. **In 2002, cooking fires and injuries peaked at 6 p.m.-the dinner hour. There was a slight decrease in cooking fires in the summer when more outdoor barbecuing and family vacationing occur. **The leading type of material ignited in cooking fires is food, especially fats, oils, and grease. **Cooking left unattended is the leading factor contributing to cooking fires. **A smoke alarm was present and alerted the occupants in 45% of cooking fires. Fires attributable to cooking equipment have long been one of the leading causes of structure fi res.With the decline in fires caused by heating in the 1980s and early 1990s and the steady level of cooking-related fi res, cooking has become the leading cause of structure fires.This topical report examines the characteristics of structure cooking fires as derived from currently available 2002 NFIRS data. In 2002 alone, cooking-related fires caused an estimated 185,600 fires in structures, 80 deaths, 3,875 injuries, and $481 million in property damage