Barbecuing is one of the favorite summer activities of Austrians. But heating up and handling the hot device is not always easy. Every year, 700 people are so badly injured while cooking in the open air that they require hospital treatment.
One in two victims suffers burns, according to a broadcast by the Dutch Road Safety Board (KFV) on Thursday. According to the accident database of KFV Injury Database (IDB) Austria, cuts (30 percent) and falls (16 percent) are also among the most common consequences of accidents. 13 percent of all grill injuries affect children under the age of 14.
Never use petrol & Co. as an ignition aid
Particularly serious accidents while enjoying a barbecue can result from the formation of flames. According to the KFV, basic rule number one is therefore: never use means of ignition such as spirits, petrol or alcohol. “By using fire accelerators, meter-high flame walls and well above 1000 degrees can develop explosively. Care must also be taken not to allow the marinade from the grilled food to drip onto the embers – this can also cause flare-ups,” warns Armin Kaltenegger, head of property protection at KFV.
The treatment of the consequences of burns is sometimes a complex and lengthy undertaking: “When burns occur during grilling, they are often severe and therefore often require surgery and longer hospital stays. However, smaller children in particular suffer from severe burns, because they often be at eye level with the grill and can suffer burns to their face and upper body, which is particularly dramatic when you consider that injuries of this magnitude can be fatal to young children,” warned Lars-Peter Kamolz, head of the clinical division for plastic, aesthetic and reconstructive surgery at the Graz Medical University.
Never leave children unsupervised while grilling
It is all the more important not to leave children unattended near the grills and to maintain an appropriate safety distance. It is advisable to make the barbecue area a taboo area to play. Finally, a tip for choosing the right place for the barbecue: it should always be set up stably on a flat surface and preferably protected from the wind, as the wind can spread smoke and sparks. If the ground is uneven, it must first be leveled on at least the four foot support surfaces.
Source: Krone
I am Ida Scott, a journalist and content author with a passion for uncovering the truth. I have been writing professionally for Today Times Live since 2020 and specialize in political news. My career began when I was just 17; I had already developed a knack for research and an eye for detail which made me stand out from my peers.
