West Sussex Fire & Rescue Service is urging people to take extra care when cooking after attending six kitchen fires in the space of just six hours on Tuesday (March 30)

Most started as a result of cooking being left unattended and thankfully were contained to the cooker area.

A kitchen fire at a house in Cobbles Crescent in Crawley is believed to have started when a cooker hob was accidentally knocked on setting light to items left on the hob top.

The best piece of advice is to keep the cooking area completely clear and, if you have an electric cooker, switch it off at the wall when you’re not using it.

The Home Fire Safety Checks that the Fire Service  carry out and the smoke detectors  fitted undoubtedly mean that many lives are saved because people are getting an early warning of a fire.    However, a smoke detector alone cannot prevent a fire starting in the first place so we are urging residents to take a little extra care when they are cooking to minimise the risk of a fire occurring.

Top tips to stay safe in the kitchen:

•Kitchen fires often occur when people get distracted – if you are called away from the cooker then ensure you take pans off the heat

•Keep your cooker top and cooking area completely clear

•Don’t put oven gloves or tea towels down on a hot cooker after you have used them

•Clean toasters, hobs and grill pans regularly to avoid a build-up of crumbs or fat which can easily catch fire

•Avoid wearing clothes with loose, flowing sleeves if you’re cooking

•Cooking after drinking alcohol can be a recipe for disaster – consider a takeaway instead!

•Ditch that chip pan! Thermostatically controlled deep fat fryers are much safer

If you do have a fire in the kitchen, don’t take any risks – get everyone out and dial 999M