The operation and communications department of the Civil Defense in Jeddah received notifications of more than 50 incidents of fire in home kitchens during the month of Ramadan, according to Director of Civil Defense in Jeddah Brig. Salem Mautrofi.

He said these fires were a result of high temperatures and failure on the part of housewives to follow proper methods of preparing, heating and frying foods.

More than 30 percent of fire accidents occurring in home kitchens during Ramadan were also a result of increasing electrical loads owing to use of a number of appliances simultaneously to prepare meals, in addition to gas leaks caused by negligence in carrying out routine inspections and maintenance of gas pipes, Mautrofi added.

He urged housewives to follow the instructions provided by the Civil Defense to avoid such incidents, which can be found on the website. The Civil Defense offers a range of programs and preventative education tools that can help avoid the risk of household accidents that can occur during cooking.

Lack of awareness by domestic household workers in dealing with kitchen appliances increases the number of accidents, such as those caused by microwave ovens, gas leaks and increased heat of cooking oil during frying, Mautrofi said.

He recommended using electric frying appliances to avoid the risk of ignition of oil and to avoid wearing baggy clothing made of highly flammable materials while preparing meals. He also advised housewives to ensure the power supply is turned off when cleaning appliances to ensure safety.

Om Reem spoke to Arab News about her experience with a similar incident, saying: “God thankfully protected us from a major fire in our kitchen during the first week of Ramadan that could have taken my life and the life of my children.”

She said she was preparing pizza and had placed it in the microwave oven before going to the living room to read the Qur’an, where she fell asleep and woke up to the sound of a powerful explosion coming from the kitchen.

“I immediately went to the kitchen and disconnected the microwave from the electric outlet, but luckily the fire was contained inside the kitchen,” she said. Civil Defense teams arrived and quickly put out the fire soon.