Thanksgiving weekend is here and many are at the cottage getting their ovens ready for a feast, but fire officials advise caution after a recent incident.
A cottage on Camp Jackson Road went up in flames in the afternoon on Sunday, October 1, with Muskoka Lakes fire chief Ryan Murrell saying an oven's heat caused it during a self-cleaning cycle.
The lone occupant was cleaning the short-term rental at the time, as he was in between clients, says Murrell. No injuries were reported.
He says the occupant had most of the windows open to air out the structure and was alerted about the blaze by the sound of one breaking.
"He was cleaning away in different areas and was startled by breaking glass," said Murrell. "There were smoke alarms sounding and CO alarms sounding."
Through the witness statement, he says the fire's origin led to the same area as the oven.
"The witness statement does indicate that he had the self-cleaning feature engaged on his oven," said Murrell. "That seems to be the only item that could have got enough heat to start the fire."
He says this situation is a common cause of fires throughout North America.
"They can get over 500 degrees Celsius," said Murrell.
"When I looked at other reports that have come in, it looks like people don't clean out all of the debris in the oven before they turn on that self-cleaning feature. That often causes a fire within the oven itself, and then I don't really understand how it would ever escape that box, but the box is just a tin box, so at some point, it would have to create enough heat within that cavity to light the items around it on fire through radiant heat."
He says the fire was so hot in this situation that the cottage continued to burn from noon to around 9 p.m. In the end, the building was a complete loss.
Many are set to use their ovens to cook all sorts of Thanksgiving staples this weekend, and the fire chief provided some safety tips.
"Stay with the items that you're cooking - this holds true with this [situation] as well, even if you're just turning on the self-cleaning feature in your oven - stay with that device," said Murrell.
"Should it catch fire, immediately call 911, exit the building, do not try to put out the fire because oftentimes these ovens lock so you can't even get in there. Wait for us to arrive and then we'll de-energize the device, turn off the breaker if it's an electric one or shut off the valve if it's propane."
Murrell noted fireplace safety as well with colder weather on the way.
"If you've never burned in a fireplace before, make sure the flue is open," said Murrell. "You understand what's going on inside the fireplace, how many logs are typical that you would put in there and have that chimney clean and make sure that you're absolutely certain that you understand all the things that are going to happen.
"Make sure if it's a rental or an Airbnb that you have 911 posted and the address so that first responders know where they're going and where you're at, and you know where you're at, just in case you have to call us."
More information about home fire safety can be found here.
Images via the Muskoka Lakes Fire and Emergency Services
