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Stay Safe On Thanksgiving

 

When you fire up the oven to roast your Thanksgiving turkey, you’re probably not thinking about tragedy. Unfortunately, home fires are the most common disaster in the United States, according to the American Red Cross. One is reported every 79 seconds. Cooking is the leading cause of those fires. Approximately 4,000 fires occur on Thanksgiving Day each year. Here are some safety tips to keep your Thanksgiving fire-free:

• Stay in the kitchen and keep watch while you are cooking.

• Use a timer if you have something in the oven or are boiling or simmering something on the stove.

• Don’t wear loose sleeves or clothing when cooking.

• Keep anything that can catch on fire, like pot holders or oven mitts, away from your stovetop or oven.

• Turkey fryers are extremely dangerous and most safety organizations do not recommend their use.

• Make sure you have a smoke alarm installed with working batteries. Push the button to check that it’s working every month and install new batteries at least once a year.

• After your guests leave, do a home safety check to make sure that all candles and cigarettes are extinguished.

Learn How to Recycle Your Cell

Most people don’t know where or how to recycle their cell phones. Consequently less than 20 percent of unwanted cell phones are recycled every year, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Cell phones are made from precious metals, copper, and plastics, all of which require energy to mine and manufacture. By recycling cell phones, we keep these valuable elements from ending up in landfills and conserve natural resources.

In the United States, it’s estimated that 100 million cell phones are ready for “end-of-life management.” If all those cell phones were recycled, enough energy would be saved to power more than 194,000 households with electricity for one year. To learn how to recycle your old cell phones, type “recycle cell phones” into your favorite search engine.