Fire Prevention Week runs Sunday, Oct. 8 to Saturday, Oct. 14 this year.

The theme for FPW this year is 鈥楥ooking safety starts with you.鈥� Statistics show that cooking fires are the leading cause of home fires and injuries from home fires, and cooking outside, on a barbecue, is one area where safety practises are often overlooked.

Richard Major, who owns The Barbecue Cleaning Co. in Courtenay, said regular maintenance of your barbecue is critical in preventing fires.

鈥淢aintenance for the barbecue is extremely important - in particular, the grease pan itself, just below the burners,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he reason being is that people usually cook a lot of different meats on the barbecues, which all have different fats. All that fat is going to end up dripping down into the grease pan, below the burners, and once it gets cooler out, it鈥檚 going to harden. Then the next time you light up the barbecue, even though it鈥檚 below the burners. So grill maintenance is really important.鈥�

Major said the grease pan should be cleaned once every 10 uses, which includes the foil pan liner as well.

In addition to the barbecue, the hose extensions can also be a hazard and should receive proper attention.

鈥淲hen you have a natural gas line or propane hose that is exposed to direct sunlight every day, that is going to start to deteriorate the integrity of that line,鈥� said Major. 鈥淭hat can actually cause gas leaks over time, and I have seen it before. So you want to look closely at your hose. Bend it and look for cracking in the hose, which there shouldn鈥檛 be. If you see any cracking in that hose, you will want to replace it right away, because that could be a potential for fire.鈥�

Natural gas hoses must also be monitored as to where they are placed, in relation to appliances.

鈥淔or example, I saw a customer who was smoking salmon in his smoker, and he didn鈥檛 realize that his hose was in contact with the smoker, and the element was burning the hose,鈥� said Major.

Another piece of advice Major gave was to keep an eye on your children and their activities. He witnessed an errant soccer ball hit a charcoal barbecue and knock the entire barbecue flying.

鈥淭his was in the middle of summer, and those briquettes become quite hot,鈥� said Major. 鈥淪o always be mindful not only of the barbecue placement, but also of where your children and pets are going to be.鈥�