Stovetop Cooking the number one cause of household fire, is the basis for this years theme Watch What You Heat for National Fire Prevention Week Oct. 8th to 15th.
The 118,700 home fires, one every 4 minutes, that involved cooking equipment, accounted for 250 deaths, 3,880 injuries, and $512 million in direct property damage, according to a 2003 NFPA report. Estimates from the Home Safety Council indicate that indirect costs are in the billions of dollars. According to the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, the U.S. has one of the highest fire death and injury rates in the world.
Low-income families, seniors, and students are the most vulnerable and the number of fires year over year with these groups remain constant.
Is there a national apathy towards the loss of life, the injuries, and the costs associated with stovetop cooking? The fire prevention community is doing its part, but behavior in adults is very difficult to change. The adoption of smoke alarms and sprinklers has had a significant impact on saving li5B4ves as has community education, but all of these measures have done nothing to prevent the cause. Detectors and alarms alert homeowners that there is a fire; suppression systems aid in minimizing damage; but what about technologies that prevent these fires from occurring in the first place!
Our homes are equipped with technologies that are under continuous development - state of the art entertainment systems; personal and property security systems and energy efficient heating systems to mention only a few of the products that keep us in comfort and safety. Yet, the conventional stovetop that we use day in and day out has changed little in the past 50 years. There may be electronic displays, timers, and other toys, but the fact of the matter is that the coiled element of an electric stove is the same device that our grandparents used, a devise that heats to temperatures far beyond those needed for cooking temperatures that have the ability to ignite cooking oils and other household materials in seconds.
As the old saying goes an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. To reduce the deaths and injuries caused by stovetop cooking requires a permanent fix to the inherent problem the over heating of the element.
One such engineering solution is the Safe-T-element cooking system, designed to help prevent stovetop cooking fires before they start! By seamlessly controlling the high end temperature of an eB68lectric coil stovetop element, below the ignition point of cooking oils and other common household materials while still cooking effectively, Safe-T-element has the potential to significantly reduce the number of stovetop cooking fires.
And because a disproportionate number of stovetop cooking fires occur in low income, university and senior housing this is a solution that can be easily targeted to these vulnerable, high risk groups.
The Safe-T-element cooking system was designed to help prevent stovetop cooking fires before they start! By seamlessly controlling the high end temperature of an electric coil stovetop element below the ignition point of cooking oils and other common household materials while still cooking effectively.
This technology was originally taken to appliance manufacturers to be installed at source. However, while the dangers associated with stovetop cooking are well known to the industry they instead attribute these startling statistics to the misuse of the stove as opposed to the appliance itself. While this may be true, the same can be said for cigarettes, candles, mattresses, and childrens clothing and yet in those product categories, either the industry has voluntarily taken steps to protect its customers from potential misuse or legislators have stepped in and enforced the issue. Stovetop cooking fires happen to those who are most vulnerable. With seniors for example, there is a significant difference between misuse and forgetfulness associated with advanced age. Its time that the industry either voluntarily or is forced to adopt new technology that puts an end to this problem.
This significant societal problem must and can be simply addressed if the industry and/or legislators take an interest in solving/reducing the problem.
This patented product, created by Pioneering Technology Inc. recently received the U.S. Home Safety Councils Award for Product Innovation in Consumer Safety and was recognized at the NFPAs World Fire Expo (http://clients.dunedain.com/pioneeringtech/newsforweb.mp4). Safe-T-element has been retrofitted to existing electric coiled stovetops and has a track record of success, aiding in the prevention of cooking fires for housing authorities, senior's residences, colleges and other multi-resident facilities throughout North America.
Now is the time to ensure Fire Prevention Week lasts MORE THAN A WEEK. Now is the time to implement solutions that bring an end, to these needless tragedies.
To find additional information on home safety products please visit: http://www.renovation-headquarters.com
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