Owning and running a restaurant takes hard work and dedication. If this is your livelihood, you know how much effort goes into maintaining a safe business for your employees and customers. In a large, industrial kitchen, it’s particularly important to practice proper restaurant fire safety to ensure your business is not at risk of suffering fire damage, which could hurt people or cause you economic loss. Read on for some sensible tips for keeping your restaurant safe from fire.
Be aware of common fire hazards in your restaurant’s kitchen, and make sure employees are familiar with them as well. Open flames, grease traps, improperly stored flammable materials, and frayed electrical cords are the top issues responsible for fires in restaurants. Checking your storage areas for flammable materials, examining wiring, and maintaining cleanliness mitigates your risk of fire. An extra dose of caution around these common causes of restaurant fires keeps employees safer in the kitchen.
Consider updating your restaurant insurance policy to make sure you have the highest level of protection should fire damage occur. Even when you’re practicing proper restaurant fire safety procedures, the unexpected can happen. It’s important to safeguard your business against unanticipated costs or accidents. An insurance agent can even visit your restaurant and point out fire safety tools you can implement to get a discount on your payments. While your policy itself can’t prevent a fire from occurring, it can help protect your assets in a time of need and prevent economic hardship.
Make sure you’re up-to-date with OSHA standards. Not only will following the policies prevent you from being fined for non-compliance, it’ll minimize the risk of fire in your restaurant (which is what the policies were designed to do). Examine OSHA’s fire safety standards with your employees. Creating an emergency action plan, training employees to use fire extinguishers, and maintaining your overhead extinguishing system are some of the key points you’ll want to ensure you’re in compliance with.
Following the tips above can help you incorporate current restaurant fire safety practices into your business, which is a critical task for you as a restaurant owner. Protecting your employees, customers, and investment is a top concern.
Consider your current practices: can you think of any improvements? What are some simple measures you suggest to other restaurateurs?
