Beware of Thanksgiving Day Hazards

Have you ever walked into a store the day after Halloween and felt like you flash-forwarded through time to mid-December? Ghost and skeleton decorations are instantly replaced with red and green foil, ribbons and bows, candy canes and Santa statues. Only days into November, Christmas commercials start airing on TV and some radio stations convert to all carols, all the time.

But what about Thanksgiving?

Thanksgiving is a time that’s rich in history and tradition and shouldn’t be forgotten or ignored. For example:

Did you know?

• The first American Thanksgiving Day parade was held in 1920 in Philadelphia. The Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York came four years later and has grown to be the largest and most popular in the nation.
• The Detroit Lions hosted – and defeated – the Chicago Bears in the first NFL Thanksgiving Day game in 1934. The Lions are now one of two teams who play every Thanksgiving. (The Dallas Cowboys are the other team.)
• Although it’s unlikely that turkey was served at the first Thanksgiving, it eventually became the staple for dinner and the National Turkey Federation (NTF) estimates that 46 million turkeys are eaten for Thanksgiving.

A newer tradition that’s grown in popularity is to serve a deep-fried turkey at the feast. Proponents say that it takes less cooking time and the meat is juicier (and, honestly, what doesn’t taste better deep-fried?). However, preparing a turkey this way can be a dangerous proposition since it requires vast amounts of hot oil, which can splash, spill over or combust and burst into flames. The NTF and Butterball are two resources to learn how to properly and safely deep-fry a turkey. The most important rules are to never leave the turkey unattended while cooking and to keep pets and children away from the deep-fryer.

In fact, it’s a good idea not to leave any food in the oven or on the stove top over an open flame unattended while preparing Thanksgiving dinner to reduce fire risks. Cooking-related fires happen more on Thanksgiving Day than any other day of the year, contributing to 75 percent of Thanksgiving fires compared to 46 percent of fires on other days, according to the National Fire Protection Association. Let’s face it, nobody wants to eat blackened, dry and crunchy turkey, and you definitely don’t want to call the fire department or file an insurance claim when you should be enjoying quality time with family and friends.

Even the most careful cooks can have an accident, so be sure to reach out to your local insurance agent in advance to make sure you have enough coverage to repair or replace your damaged property in the event of a Thanksgiving mishap.

The greatest Thanksgiving tradition aside from gorging on delicious food is surrounding ourselves with the people we love and reflecting on all that we’re grateful for in our lives.

Happy Thanksgiving!

[article via Mercury Insurance]