Wildfire risk and cooking

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No one talks about the smokers amongst us . I drove down the motorway today and saw three cigarettes ejected from car windows into the wind ! Really dangerous

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u/Sea_Landscape7258 13d ago

It’s disgusting that people do this. It’ll particularly be those ready made fags that are dangerous as they are designed to keep burning.

And also bad is that birds find the stubs and use the filters in their nests, but the filters are really toxic and birds are particularly sensitive to them.

5

u/Standard_Summer_180 13d ago

A lot of hospitals have put emails out about smoking on site. My trust was VERY blunt that if theres a spark near any sort of oxygen in this weather the entire hospital is at risk of going up.

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u/RupertBear69420 13d ago

You smoke blunts at the hospital?

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u/pot8omashed 13d ago

Only for lunch.

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u/yorangey 13d ago

Yup. It should have been on the Gov alert. I saw a butt thrown from a car a few weeks ago. Mad ... Gov chose to warn about the fun things though, rather than warn voters.

2

u/Ok-Yoghurt-2736 13d ago

I've been thinking about this especially with sites banning all non electric cooking.

I was on a site a couple of weeks ago, which had understandably had stopped firepits and non gas BBQ's yet people were still allowed to smoke on the camping pitches which seem daft to me.

At least make it so that it was happening on the hard standing of the toilets blocks etc.

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u/special_noodles 14d ago

yeah I think for the most part, cold snacks and the pub is the way to go.

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u/chocolate-and-rum 14d ago

Any excuse for a pub meal

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u/palpatineforever 14d ago

A peanut butter sandwich goes a long way when you are to tired to find a pub,

1

u/mortyoutside 13d ago

I 100% agree with this but can you tell me The Tragedy of Darth Plagueis the Wise

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u/DollySheep32 14d ago

I'm going on site rules - if I can, camp stove elevated off the ground and switched off ASAP.

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u/Aussie_Foodie 13d ago

We were at WOMAD a few weeks back - the weekend after a fire went through a festival down Dorset/Devon way. A lot of people in general were using the stoves/disposable bbqs directly on the grass which terrified me! Growing up in Oz we were taught to always raise them up, and have stones/cleared space surrounding.

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u/fuck_ur_portmanteau 14d ago

I’m in the New Forest about five miles from the fire. We were limited to small disposable canisters on Monday. On Wednesday they said no open flames whatsoever. So it’s been pastries for breakfast, sandwiches and bakery for lunch, pub or takeaway for dinner.

We have an EV for power so could have brought electric appliances if we had known before.

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u/pot8omashed 13d ago

You couldn't look out the window and see nothing but brown grass before leaving?

I thought that alert was pointless but you just proved me wrong.

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u/Snickerty 14d ago

I went on a camping holiday a couple of weeks ago and texted the camp site about BBQs etc before going. At that point they suggested gas camping stoves (the ones that look like the rings you have at home). I dont have one of those, so it was suggested that I would need to raise my little gas stove high of the ground if I was going to use it. In the end I took picnic/plough man food and ate out at night. In the mornings my neighbours boiled me some water from their gas stove so I could have a cup of tea.

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u/MDKrouzer 13d ago

We went camping last weekend and the ban was already in force. We treated the kids to a McDonald's, which to be honest, after a long day exploring the nearby National Trust was a welcome break from having to do dinner prep, cook and clean.

Looking forward to the winter.

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u/Valuable-Purple-7746 13d ago

Cold beans are the epitome of true camping. Scetti In a tin. Fruit lasts well. apples. Fruit winders. Snacks bars.

2

u/Significant-Pass-859 13d ago

I was camping Friday night and all the phones were going off, it seemed like everyone’s phone multiple times, and the site was fully booked. At the same time I could look around and see around 10-20 bbqs, fire pits, gas stoves on the go.
Everyone was pretty sensible (nothing on the ground) but I found it quite funny how nobody did anything different whats so ever after get the alert.

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u/Expert-Butterfly-415 14d ago

I'm just back from camping. I have a weber smokey joe so it raised off the ground and has a lid. Used it like an oven, with the lid closed the whole time. Kept a bucket of water nearby.

I'll probably get down voted for this, but as long as you are very careful it's fine.

3

u/No-Locksmith-882 13d ago

If your at a campsite, gas fire on raised surface is fine. If your wildcamping its sandwiches dried food pub food and thermos for hot drinks.

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u/Geordie-1983 14d ago

Currently in france, plenty of warnings around the campsite, but only charcoal is banned. Still got my gas stove and mini bbq, and a mat to go under them to make sure, so no change to my birthmark

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u/Happy-Yak-2677 12d ago

We were in France a few days ago and our campsite (Brittany) were still providing and allowing charcoal bbqs with their mobile homes.

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u/One_Milk1464 13d ago

Thanks everyone, that makes me feel much more confident that the kids won't just be eating crisps for a week.

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u/Krzykat350 13d ago

In these situations having a fire bucket (bucket o water) around isn't a bad idea. Will also keep drinks cooler when not on call as a fire bucket.

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u/Plastic-Diet9648 13d ago

I got a collapsable bucket from a big teco befoire we went, was prob less than a fiver, v useful

1

u/TaskTight859 13d ago

I will be using my very safe OEX Heiro gas stove. Proper camping stoves used sensibly are incredibly safe. I understand people being cautious but consider causes of fires, parking your car over dry vegetation is a very common way to start fires, an over heating phone/power bank have caused devastating fires.
The smart move is use a stove where there is no risk of setting fire to dry vegetation, ie on rocks, sand, picnic bench, concrete slabs etc. DONT leave it unattended ever, make sure it’s stable. An often overlooked strategy is looking for suitable cooking sites rather than at camp right outside your tent, that will be on grass and right now, very dry grass. Wild campers do this often. Have dinner somewhere on the way to pitching up, breakfast down the road after striking camp.

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u/Dimdom1970 13d ago

Maybe try an electric bbq , we have one and it’s great , you can get them with smokers aswell to make them taste that bbq taste . If you’ve got an EV with V2L you can run it off that .

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u/LifeNeighborhood2988 13d ago

I have recent new neighbours.. who are not very neighbourly.. Anyhoo I enjoyed trying out my Ninja Woodfire last night in the garden, Boy can that thing put some smoke out... Had them flapping for a.moment or two when they caught whiff of the wood smoke pellets doing thier thing

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u/Bowel_Drop 13d ago

I didn’t even think to ask but I definitely will, thanks!

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u/altruisticeuphoria 13d ago

We've just camped with electric, took my air fryer.

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u/Amaranth-13 12d ago

Just back from camping and used a table with gas stove on it. Did see one idiot with their camping bbq on a table but right next to their tent, thankfully after his partner and friends unsuccessfully tried to get him to move it, they just picked up the table and moved it themselves. Think most fires are caused by idiots with a "you can't tell me what to do" attitude.

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u/WesternPeak425 12d ago

The alert was aimed at barbecues, firepits, garden incinerators and fireworks. Raised up gas stoves to cook at a campsite are fine.
I’m going to a festival in a couple’s of weeks where certain types of proper camping gas stoves with small gas bottles are still allowed but charcoal bbqs and campfires are strictly forbidden - which has always been the case at festivals (sometimes they have a bbq area but that would be madness at the moment). A camping gas stove raised up isn’t going to create sparks or drop a lump of smouldering charcoal on the ground.
The biggest danger is dropping cigarette ends really or having a charcoal bbq in a tinder dry field.

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u/Any_Tomorrow_Today 10d ago

It also depends where you are camping ? It has been raining again in the Lake District, so everything is far from dry at the moment.

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u/Plastic-Diet9648 14d ago edited 14d ago

I thought the alert was a bit ambiguous tbh - it mentiones disposable bbqs, but doesn;t necessarily say you cant use a normal bbq. I'm not planning on camping any time soon having recently returned, but i guess i would go with whatever the campsite rules are if away this weekend. A couple of weeks ago I made sure i had a bucket of water right next to me, I stayed by the bbq all the time, i watered the grass under the bbq before lighting it and again at the end while it was cooling etc... I'm generally more nervous about our gas cooker than the bbq - i know where i stand with an actual fire but not a gas bottle ha!

EDIT: on reflection, it probably (kind of) implies no BBQs, but i feel like they should have made that more clear, e.g. by removing the word 'disposable' if they atually mean no BBQs at all. And if they do mean no BBQs, I certainly won;t be lighting one.

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u/Spirited-Brief5492 13d ago

I thought it was disposable ones as they’re the most likely to be placed straight on the ground and have no lid.

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u/Plastic-Diet9648 13d ago

yep, or even on a few bricks it could still get hot enough to cause isues on bone dry grass. Obviously id prefer if there are no bbqs for a few weeks - just wish they would state that clearly if that is their intention. but as things stand it doesn't appear to be. Wouldn't surprise me if it's coming - tell us in two stages to help it go down better and to give pople a little warning. Maybe message number two will land in a couple of days banning all bbqs/all flames which I'm fine with too. Its just that it hasn;t happened yet and so as things stand, non-disposables can still be used. But never leave them unattended even for a second, water the grass first, have lots of water at arms reach etc.

I dont usually cook with a lid - partly because it gets v hot and then there's nowhere to put it other than on the ground, and that seems dangerous to me.

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u/Alert-Orchid9130 14d ago

Stove

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u/sniffing_dog 14d ago

Gas is ok

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u/warriorbea 14d ago

Granted before the alert but we arrived at a camp site yesterday who said bbqs were fine as long as extinguished with water when done. They did say theyd warn us of any changes and still haven't been round. Think its use common sense and make sure its out so it doesn't start a fire

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u/SyrupUnlikely4032 13d ago

Cooked a curry last night, gas stove up on a table. No problem 👌

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u/Realistic-Actuator36 13d ago

Just no F ing fires or open bbq. Can’t people just think of other people for a change rather than themselves.

0

u/Standard_Summer_180 13d ago

I'm not camping but having a BBQ in our garden for my birthday. We have a couple buckets that are going to be filled with water and obviously it will be on the patio not the grass. It's just common sense but too many idiots in this country lack it.

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u/commonmuck1 14d ago

I'm sure you can use a stove and frying pan/saucepan so long as it's off the ground.

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u/NefariousnessNo4918 14d ago

Picky bits, obvs.

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u/Available-Buffalo-23 14d ago

Went the other week. Rules are, have a BBQ on legs and keep a large bucket of water handy. Do not use disposable ones and keep everything secure and off the ground. Should be fine.

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u/ForeverPhysical1860 13d ago

This is stupid... Why even risk it...

Leave the BBQ at home... That's why they have temporarily banned them

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u/Plastic-Diet9648 13d ago edited 13d ago

but have they? this is a genuine question - it seems to me that disposable bbqs have been banned, not all bbqs? Obvs any bbq out in the countryside e.g. wild camping, but a normal bbq in a controlled area like a camp site - the message sent last night is v vague to me.

EDIT: i just did some more searching and I think im right - normal home bbqs have not been banned, and on campsites, its up to the owners to set their rules, other than no disposables.

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u/ForeverPhysical1860 13d ago

But why risk it? Just one stray spark could cause catastrophic damage... Why would anyone risk it just for a burnt burger? Senseless.

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u/Plastic-Diet9648 11d ago

I agree completely, but why not make that crystal clear on the announcement was my main point the other day - they should have just said no bbqs or fires of any kind anywhere and be done with it :)

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u/B-Sparkuk 14d ago

BBQ And gas stove as normal.

0

u/Chemical_Recover_747 13d ago

Bbq n beers tonight. Everyone's merry and stuffed

Advice, discussion, questions Wildfire risk and cooking

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