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Fire Safety Precautions for 4th of July

By Jonathan Meyer

4th of July celebrations are festive affairs that bring families and friends together. Every city and town across the United States enjoy this holiday in various ways. However, no 4th of July celebration is complete without a cookout or a barbecue. It has been a long-running tradition for people to prepare their food outdoors by making burgers, hot dogs, steak, chicken, seafood, or corn on the comb hot off the grill. Aside from all the fun and games that happen during this day, an integral part of the whole experience is the freshly-cooked food that is served.

Although these celebrations are joyous occasions that bring people together, fire safety precautions are still necessary since grills and barbecue pits can cause dangerous fires. Adults should make a conscious effort to remind their children to stay away from cooking grills and barbecue pits. Since most of these affairs are held outdoors, most of the children are playing around the premises and can accidentally topple over grills and get seriously burned or injured. That is why preventive measures need to be taken to avoid these accidents from happening. The best thing to do is to situate cooking grills and barbecue pits at designated areas far from the area where kids are playing.

Another important thing people should remember is that whoever is handling the grill or the barbecue pit has to make sure that he or she knows how to handle the fire burning from the charcoal or wood. There should always be a fire extinguisher nearby in the event a large flame bursts from the grill or barbecue pit. The cooks preparing the food on the grill should also not overload the grill with too much charcoal or lighter fluid. If you are having a barbecue at home, you could opt to invest on a high-tech gas barbecue grill so that you don't need to worry about controlling the heat and cooking time. Nowadays, in spite of continuing old traditions, the most important thing is still the safety of the people around the area.

If you plan on having an outdoor barbecue on Independence Day, make it a point to check your barbecue grill days before you use it. Have a repairman service it so you don't need to worry about it breaking down or, worse, even causing a major fire. It is imperative that you fill the grill with enough charcoal so that the fire burns slowly and doesn't burst into flames. When you are finally grilling your food, never leave whatever you're cooking unattended. It only takes a few seconds before a blazing fire can begin. If you are the one manning the grill, be sure to always be near it and be the one to get the food out and on the serving trays or plates. By following all these precautionary tips, you should be able to celebrate the 4th of July without any injuries or problems

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