Fire service stretched dealing with three incidents

Thursday 16 February 2017

It was a busy night last night for the Fire Service as they responded to three incidents all in a short space of time.

There were two kitchen fires in St Helier and one false alarm in St. Saviour.

Pic Credit: Jersey Fire & Rescue

Shortly after 18:30, nine firefighters were dispatched to extinguish a chip pan fire in St. Helier.  No one was hurt is the incident. However, the cause of the fire led the Fire Service to issue another warning about the danger of using chip pans.

Watch Commander Larry Vibert said: “The use of using these style of pans for cooking have caused numerous Kitchen Fires and can be extremely dangerous if water is used in an attempt to extinguish a fire”.

“If you do have a chip pan fire, never attempt to move the pan, turn off the heat and leave it to cool. Then get out, stay out and call the Fire Service out.” 

'Jersey Fire & Rescue'.

In the midst of battling the chip pan fire, they were called to another incident in St. Saviour.

Neighbours had seen flames at a nearby house, and a fire engine was diverted from the initial incident in St. Helier. 

Upon arrival, they discovered it was a false alarm due to the occupant of the premise using candles. 

Later on in the evening, the fire service was called to a third incident; a kitchen fire in St. Helier. Firefighters entered the scene and discovered the fire had been caused by an integrated fridge freezer.

Pic Credit: Jersey Fire & Rescue.

The fire did not spread and no one was hurt in the incident. Fire fighters remained on the scene for some time after the flames had been extinguished, ventilating the property to clear it of smoke.

In light of the initial incident, Jersey Fire and Rescue Service offer islanders the following advice:

• Consider using a thermostatically controlled deep fat fryer instead

• Never leave your cooking unattended

• Never fill a chip pan more than a third full

• Never use water to extinguish a fire