TIPS: How to not get sick, and prevent a fire this Thanksgiving

As you prepare for a Thanksgiving feast this Thursday, make sure your doing everything you can to prevent getting sick, or starting a fire while in the kitchen.

Videos are all over Youtube show turkeys going up in flames. A cooking fire is 3 times more likely on Thanksgiving than any other day of the year, according to the National Fire Protection Association. There are especially dangers when it comes to deep frying the bird.

“Oil and water do not mix so whenever you introduce a large amount of water into hot oil it’s just going to basically blow up,” Chef Rulis Gonzalez told ABC-7.

To prevent this, Gonzalez said that’s why its important to keep your turkey dry. The El Paso Fire Department said start off by measuring how much oil you need by using water.

When cooking a turkey in the oven, make sure it’s at the proper temperature.

“To make sure they’re not going to get sick, you need to cook it to 165 degrees once you get that reading on the thigh area then you know your turkey is at a safe eating temperature,” Gonzalez said.

Click here for more tips from the El Paso Fire Department.