Restaurant fire - Tottenham

Firefighters have issued a reminder of their cooking safety advice following a fire at a restaurant on Tottenham High Road.

A small part of the ground floor kitchen and the ducting from ground floor to the roof were damaged by the fire. Firefighters led two men to safety using an external staircase. 19 people left the building before the Brigade arrived. There were no reports of any injuries.

The fire is believed to have been accidental and was caused by deep fat frying with old oil which spread to  contaminated ducting.

A London Fire Brigade spokesperson said: "We'd like to remind restaurant and takeaway owners to ensure they don't have dirty ducting. If you don't clean the ducting in your extraction system regularly, you're at a greater risk of ducting fires.

"You should also make sure you keep the hob, cooker hood and extractor fan clean too – built up fat and grease can ignite and cause a fire."

Control Officers took the first of four calls at 2106 and mobilised four fire engines and around 25 firefighters from Tottenham, Edmonton and Holloway fire stations to the scene. The incident was over for firefighters at 2147.

Firefighters' top tips for restaurants and takeaways: 

• Have ducting in your extraction system (ventilation) cleaned regularly 
• Ensure ducting is installed correctly 
• Take extra care when cooking with hot oil as it can easily overheat and catch fire 
• Never fill the pan more than one third full of fat or oil 
• Make sure food is dry before putting it in hot oil - oil and water are a dangerous mix 
• Use an electronic deep fat fryer if possible - they have automatic temperature controls and are much safer 
• Ensure your electrical system is regularly tested
• Complete your Fire Risk Assessment and make an emergency plan.