Firefighters make Scream horror film spoof to highlight kitchen fire danger

The South Yorkshire Fire Service video based on horror film Scream aims to highlight the danger of kitchen fires

Fire chiefs have created a spoof Scream horror film to highlight the dangers of being distracted while cooking.

South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue Service said about half of all accidental house fires in the county started in the kitchen.

A third of the 800 cooking-related fires it had tackled since 2020 had been caused by people being distracted.

It has released a video based on the slasher film franchise to coincide with Halloween.

The hit Hollywood films about a masked serial killer called Ghostface spawned a number of sequels and a TV series.

South Yorkshire Fire Service group manager Ade Parkin said: "The opening scene of the original Scream movie is one of the most iconic moments in horror film history.

"We wanted to tap into that nostalgia this Halloween to remind residents that behind the masks and jump scares, there's a very real villain in everyone's home, and its name is distraction."

He said of all the cooking-related fires crews had attended "almost all of them are entirely preventable".

"It's so easy to be distracted by the TV, young children or your mobile phone - but it only takes a few moments for your cooking to ignite, sparking a fire which could put your family's lives at risk and cause irrevocable damage to your home in the process," he added.

Firefighters hope tapping into the the popular Scream film franchise will prompt people to be more careful in the kitchen

SYFR's tips for avoiding a kitchen fire

• Keep electrical leads, cardboard and fabrics well away from the hob

• Switch off cooking appliances when finished and before going to bed

• Keep ovens and grill pans clean from grease and crumbs

• Install working smoke alarms and test them regularly