Cooking leading cause of U.S. home fires; responsible for thousands of injuries every year (2024)

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Cooking leading cause of U.S. home fires; responsible for thousands of injuries every year? ›

According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), cooking fires caused hundreds of deaths, thousands of injuries and more than $1 billion in damages each year. Cooking brings family and friends together, but this normal, everyday activity can also lead to disaster.

Cooking. Unattended cooking is listed as the number one cause of residential fires.

Pay attention to fire prevention.” According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), cooking is the leading cause of home fires and home fire injuries in the United States. Unattended cooking is the leading cause of cooking fires and deaths.

Two-thirds of home cooking fires start with the ignition of food or other cooking materials. Clothing is the item first ignited in less than 1% of home cooking fires, but clothing ignitions caused 8% of the home cooking fire deaths. Ranges or cooktops account for over half (53%) of home cooking fire incidents.

Unattended cooking is by FAR the leading factor of most kitchen fires.

Cooking Related Fires

Unattended cooking is a significant contributor to household fires. Deep fat fryers, overheating pans and faulty cooking equipment can lead to disaster if left unchecked. While you may not control the presence of individuals in the kitchen at all times, you can design your space to minimize risks.

Cooking. The number one cause of house fires is unattended cooking. Make sure that you stay in the room while you are cooking with a heat source.

Every year, fire departments respond to more than 170,000 home fires caused by cooking. The top reason for these fires is someone leaving the stove unattended while cooking.

Cooking caused an average of 158,400 reported home structure fires per year (44 percent of all reported home fires in the US). These fires resulted in an average of 470 civilian deaths (18 percent of all home fire deaths) and 4,150 civilian injuries (42 percent of all reported home fire injuries) annually.

Causes of Fires and Fire Deaths

Cooking is the leading cause of home fires in the U.S. It is also the leading cause of fire injuries. Cooking fires often result from unattended cooking and human error, rather than mechanical failure of stoves or ovens.

Do gas stoves cause more fires than electric stoves? ›

Electric stoves have potential hazards, too. Houses with them were 2.6 times more likely to have fires than those with gas stoves. The death rate for electric households was 3.4 times higher compared to houses with gas appliances.

The most common cause of kitchen fires is unattended cooking. It's easy to get distracted while cooking, but a fire can start in just a matter of mere seconds. This can happen when you leave the stove or oven on and forget about it, or when you leave a pan on the stove and walk away.

While any household appliance could, theoretically, cause a fire, these are the most common culprits: Cooking ranges. Stoves are an obvious culprit when it comes to house fires. The most common causes are human error or electrical or mechanical problems inside the stove itself.

Keep cooking equipment clean. Crumbs in a toaster, built-up grease on the stovetop, and excess dust behind your appliances are fire hazards. Wear short, close-fitting, or tightly rolled sleeves. Loose clothing can catch fire if it comes in contact with a gas flame or electric burner.

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) reports that dryers and washing machines cause an average of 15,970 fires each year, with dryers causing 92% of them and an average of $200 million in property damage.

Refrigerators. Did you know that refrigerators are actually the most common fire-causing appliance in the U.S.? You can blame the fact that refrigerators run all day and night, leading to tired old relay switches and worn-out compressors, both of which are serious fire risks.

Oxygen gas is already present in the air around us, which leaves heat as the final element. Humans cause nearly 90% of wildfires in the United states¹ via discarded cigarettes, unattended campfires, burning debris, or through equipment malfunctions.

According the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA), smoke is the killer in 60% to 80% of all fire deaths. Recent research has revealed that hydrogen cyanide present in smoke generated at building fires may play a more significant role in injuries and deaths of firefighters and civilians than once thought.