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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 4, 2003)
Page 8 The INDEPENDENT, December 4, 2003 Extinguish cooking fires safely Cooking is one of the lead- ing causes of home fires. Mini- mize the risk by following the safety tips below: • Always supervise your cooking. • Keep an eye on oil. • Keep cooking area clean to avoid grease build-up. • Keep potholders and tow- els away from stovetop. • Turn pot handles toward center of stove. • Teach children to cook safely. Putting out a Cooking Fire If the fire is large or appears to be growing, do not attempt to extinguish it! Quickly leave your home and call 9-1-1 from a cell phone or neighbor’s home. • Put a Lid on It. The easiest way to extinguish a small pan fire is with a lid. Carefully slide a lid from the side of the pan over the pan and turn off the burner. The lid will “smother” the fire, while turning off the burner removes the heat. Do not move the pan until the fire is completely extinguished and the pan has cooled. • Grease and Water Do Not Mix! Never pour water on a grease fire! The flames will “splash”, resulting in burns to your body and/or catching nearby surfaces on fire. • Baking Soda. Sprinkle a generous amount of baking soda in the palm of your hand and “toss” it upon the fire. If the fire is not extinguished after several attempts, use a fire ex- tinguisher or leave your home and call 9-1-1. Never use flour as an extinguisher, as it actual- ly feeds a fire! • Fire Extinquisher. Make sure your fire extinguisher is designed to extinguish cooking fires. If the fire is small and has not spread outside the point of origin (oven/pan), use the P.A.S.S. system to put it out (Pull the pin, Aim at the base of the fire, Squeeze the handle, and Sweep from side to side). For more safety tips, visit <www.tvfr.com>. Most chimney fires preventable What is it like to have a chimney fire? It’s no fun! If it doesn’t burn the house down, it will probably wreck your chimney and scare you half to death. Here’s how it happens. Begin with one dirty chimney – let’s say a fireplace not cleaned for a couple of years. The soot lining the chimney is saturated with flammable stuff called creosote (more detail on creosote is available in any dic- tionary). It doesn’t take much to ignite creosote – a newspaper fire sending flames up to the damper is enough. Once kindled, creosote burns with joyous abandon. In a matter of seconds the fire spreads up through the flue, creating a draft that helps things along. At this point, your average chimney fire begins to roar and howl, sounding for all the world like a rocket taking off in your living room! If you run, you’ll be treated to SOOT BUSTERS Fireplace Shop & Chimney Services Gas - Wood - Pellet Fireplaces Steve & Jo Messenger (503) 397-0390 a real fireworks show. As the creosote burns, it actually peels and curls off the inside walls of the chimney. This blazing cre- osote then drips into the flue forming red-hot fire balls that are whisked up in the tremen- dous updraft. Like a giant ro- man candle, it shoots molten balls of fire out of the chimney and onto the roof. If you’re lucky, the chimney will fall apart, destroying one end of the building – if you’re not lucky, this miniature volcano can bring the whole house down. However, if you don’t panic, a chimney fire can be con- trolled. Call the fire department. Put out the fire in the fireplace with an extinguisher or sand. Cover the opening with a wet blanket and hope for the best. But it should be pointed out that having your chimney cleaned is a lot easier on the nerves than the sand and wet blanket method. ST. HELENS SEW & VAC CENTER Sales & Repairs by: Paul Stonebrook (503) 397--4495 One Convenient Location 1370 Columbia Blvd. • St. Helens,OR 97051 Email: sootbusters@ados.com • CCB# 119041 Local woman receives degree from Pioneer Among the graduates at Pi- oneer Pacific College’s Fall Graduaton, October 24 in Port- land, was Mist resident Doris Buchholz, who received an As- sociate Degree in Criminal Jus- tice. Buchholz, a 1969 graduate of Vernonia High School, was elected to the National Honor Society, Alpha Beta Kappa. She was also one of three stu- dents in the United States to be chosen for the PowerPlace- ment grant from Profiler Tech- nologies. Santa’s Mailbox Children may mail their let- ters to Santa Claus at a special mail box set up outside the Ver- nonia Fire Station. The mailbox is sponsored by the Vernonia Rural Fire District who will help make sure Santa answers all letters received. The mailbox will be avail- able until Christmas. Stan Zook and grandson by 600 year-old tree cut west of Ver- nonia. The log weighed 30,800 lb., and contained 4,400 board feet. See it in the Truck Light Parade on December 6. Donuts and Police Officers plan to help feed the needy in County Hoping to take advantage of the long-standing relationship between police officers and doughnuts to help put food on the tables of our less-fortunate neighbors, St. Helens Police Department will exchange do- nated food items for Krispy Kreme donuts. The public is invited, Decem- ber 20 from 7:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m., to bring any single perish- able or non-perishable food item to the Police Department, and exchange it for a fresh Krispy Kreme doughnut. Additional food items may be exchanged for additional doughnuts. Doughnuts may also be purchased by the dozen. All donated food and net cash donations will benefit the Columbia Pacific Food Bank, which serves all Columbia County emergency food pantries. Cash donations for the pur- chase of the Krispy Kreme doughnuts are being accepted at the St. Helens Police Depart- ment, located at 150 S. 13th Street. For more information, con- tact Chief of Police Steven Sal- lé at 503-397-3333. T ERRY ’ S G YM A COMPLETE CO-ED GYM FACILITY VERNONIA, OR • 429-0501 Whether it’s a thinner waistline or a healthier lifestyle… We Can Help! sugarfree – low carb – diabetic friendly Hours: Mon-Sat 10-6 51606 Columbia River Hwy. Scappoose (503) 543-2227
