Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service - Be more cautious when cooking, following a series of kitchen fires.

Date published: 22 February 2012

Firefighters have been called to a number of cooking-related incidents over the past 24 hours, all of which could have been avoided.

Among the incidents 
Unattended food on a grill pan was the cause of a fire Melville Road, Kearsley, at around 11.15am.

A toaster left unattended that had caused a fire in Marshwood Drive, Blackley, at around 10.20am.

A woman suffered smoke inhalation following a fire in Moorside Road, Mossley, at around 5.10pm, which was caused by a pan of food left unattended.

Chairman of Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Authority, Councillor David Acton, said: "Please think when you are cooking and make sure you are keeping yourself and your home safe from fire. So many of the kitchen fires we attend could have been so easily avoided, preventing the distress and damage caused."

Here are our top five tips for preventing fires in your kitchen:

Never leave cooking unattended, not even to answer the door or phone, as a fire could develop while you are distracted

Keep your oven, hob and grill clean. A build up of fat and grease can easily catch fire

Check the toaster is clean and away from curtains and kitchen rolls

Turn off electrical appliances when they are not being used and service them regularly

Swap your chip pan for an electric deep fat fryer - electrically deep fat fryers that plug into the wall are much safer to use.