Useless in an Emergency

After 20 years of listening to the smoke alarm going off over burnt toast, today it decided to take its time and wait until black smoke was filling the kitchen before beeping. Time to replace the smoke alarm.
What about the OH though.... she leaves the wok on the cooker on high heat with a bit of oil in it and decides to play with our daughters Furby. Wok catches fire. She stood there screaming and calling me.
I run downstairs to find her standing there looking at the wok burning, room filling with black smoke. Fire extinguisher and Fire Blanket less than 1 metre from burning wok.
I grabbed the wok and brought it out to the garden.
Do some people have no instincts on how to survive or deal with Emergencies? I asked her what she would have done if I wasnt there. She said she had no idea!

Dymo

You're my Hero, swoon!

iDave

chicks!

FatherLen

I tried to catch a knife with my foot the other day.

JustLen

Well done on the whole wok situation

krudler

FatherLen wrote: »

I tried to catch a knife with my foot the other day.

I've done that, the other week I was turning something over in the frying pan and I flipped it out of it by accident, so my stupidly natural instinct was to reach out and grab a sizzling hot piece of meat with my hand, genius.

Fr_Dougal

Dump her, she's a liability.

hoodwinked

to be fair if i see a spider i just stand there screaming until my husband removes it...


so i'd imagine i'd be useless in a real emergency!

frozenfrozen

A big box of gold leaf fell today and I tried to catch it but I missed and i punched the side of the table and the gold leaf went everywhere.

If that's not an emergency I don't know what is

Ihatecuddles-old

Im always setting things on fire, I had a candle on my dresser and flipped the duvet on to it when I got up to pee during the night....got back and the duvet was up in flames.

My dad said it was lucky it wasnt a poo I had.

jessiblah

This isn't exactly an emergency, but you still need to think fast I suppose all the same.

My friend was mugged in broad daylight, and my other two friends were with her. She was holding her purse in one hand, and her phone and a bunch of bananas from Tesco in the other.

The mugger tried to grab her phone, but he didn't get it. She held a close grip on it as he jumped on her back. The friends at first thought it was a joke and she knew him, but when they copped it wasn't one of them tried to get someone in a car to help (it happened on the pathway beside a busy road, the traffic was stopped but nobody got out). She panicked and this was all she thought of doing. The other was holding a box of cereal, frozen to the spot. She began shouting "just give him the bananas!"

In the end he got her purse, after he hit her on the head with something. It was her 18th just three days earlier so she had a majority of her vouchers and money in there. They were all really shaken up by it, and the one holding the cereal got sick after it.

As prepared or unprepared as you may be for something, once you're in the situation it's a whole different story.

The Backwards Man

Ihatecuddles wrote: »

Im always setting things on fire, I had a candle on my dresser and flipped the duvet on to it when I got up to pee during the night....got back and the duvet was up in flames.

My dad said it was lucky it wasnt a poo I had.

You're Dad as silly as you. Poos aren't flammable.:P

trickymicky

jessiblah wrote: »

She began shouting "just give him the bananas!"

I hope your friends are ok, but the whole "just give him the bananas" is just priceless.

Capt'n Midnight

20 years :eek:

They are only meant to last at most 10 years. When you change the battery check the expiry date.

CruelCoin

Deleted User wrote: »

Emergencies? I asked her what she would have done if I wasnt there. She said she had no idea!

My ex was the same.

Despite her having done first aid etc, i knew in my heart of hearts, if i were to fallen unconscious, she's sit there watching me die like the gormless bag she was, frozen in the headlights.

Any kind of stress at all and she shut down.

LizT

I don't think anyone can predict how they will react until they're in the situation. My mum fell and broke her ankle a few months ago and I froze for a few minutes. She had to tell me to cop on and told me exactly what to do. Eventually got her out to the car and up to the hospital because she didn't want an ambulance. As soon as she was in a and e and I knew she was ok I just burst into tears and started shaking like a leaf, you'd swear I was the one with an injury

I really think it depends on the situation though, you may think you'd react a certain way but you can't predict what you would do in some situations.

silentrust

trickymicky wrote: »

I hope your friends are ok, but the whole "just give him the bananas" is just priceless.

Perhaps he mistook her mobile for a banana and wanted to wrestle it from her grip. :-)

I get weirdly calm in emergency situations. Then I freak out and cry after.

Triangla

Deleted User wrote: »

Fire extinguisher and Fire Blanket less than 1 metre from burning wok.
I grabbed the wok and brought it out to the garden.

Was this a case of being frugal and not using the Fire Blanket?

Just asking because you could have tripped and done some damage.

Mam of 4

Deleted User wrote: »

I get weirdly calm in emergency situations. Then I freak out and cry after.

+1.
Can deal with emergencys, but a couple of hours later will be a bawling wreck for a few minutes then calm again, strange.

Zen65

Deleted User wrote: »

Fire extinguisher and Fire Blanket less than 1 metre from burning wok.
I grabbed the wok and brought it out to the garden.

Moving the burning wok is a bad idea. It would have been easy to tip it over enough to release burning oil onto yourself, or onto the floor, where a lot more damage could have been done. The best option would have been to use the fire blanket first, then move the wok when the flames have been smothered out.

Also, it would have been a good idea to put the furby into the burning wok . . I really hate those things!

Z

twowheelsonly

Triangla wrote: »

Was this a case of being frugal and not using the Fire Blanket?

Just asking because you could have tripped and done some damage.

In fact there were two things wrong here - The Fire Blanket and Extinguisher should never be near the cooker, in particular less than a metre away and you should never move the burning object if you can avoid doing so and only if it's 100% safe to do so.
The blanket and extinguisher should be kept well away from the potential scene of fire - i.e. the cooker, in order that you can get at them if it was a more serious blaze. Everyone seems to keep them next to the cooker though!!
You could have tripped or just dropped the blazing Wok (due to the heat) thus spreading the fire.

Having said that, I've done exactly the same but with the grill portion of an old Gas Cooker

The best and safest solution would have been to throw water on it.


........

Deleted User

Deleted User wrote: »

The best and safest solution would have been to throw water on it.


........

That was embarrassingly my first thought when my own wok went on fire. Thankfully only for a nanosecond before I copped on :rolleyes:
The kitchen is quite small so I took it off the heat, gave it a few seconds, then put it outside

We don't have a fire blanket...

bluewolf

bluewolf wrote: »

That was embarrassingly my first thought when my own wok went on fire. Thankfully only for a nanosecond before I copped on :rolleyes:
The kitchen is quite small so I took it off the heat, gave it a few seconds, then put it outside

We don't have a fire blanket...

Is it a common thing for woks to go on fire?

I have no idea what I'd do. We don't have a blanket or a fire extinguisher. I'd probably wet a tea towel and throw that on it. Is that a good idea?

That does sound like a good idea

Oh, I was just being inattentive and left it heating for far too long

elefant

Ye still have a furby?

claaaaass

bluewolf

bluewolf wrote: »

That does sound like a good idea

Oh, I was just being inattentive and left it heating for far too long

How long did it take to go up in flames? I'm always doing that (putting some oil in and leaving it too long) but tend to think 'shurr it'll never go on fire, it'll be grand.'

Triangla

Triangla wrote: »

Was this a case of being frugal and not using the Fire Blanket?

Just asking because you could have tripped and done some damage.

Not at all. Fire was contained in the wok at the time, so was quicker to remove it to a less hazardous location. No fear of tripping. I was cool, calm and collected lol

Btw... as very little oil is used in the wok, there was little danger of it spilling out.
I would not recommend throwing water on burning oil, it will splatter like crazy and you will get splash burns.
If it was the frying pan, deffo use the blanket which on reflection is in a bad location.

Furbies are all the rage again. My daughter got it for her communion 2 weeks ago. They are so f***ing annoying!

LoonyLovegood

You never know how you'll react. I was walking through a park one evening when a guy fell down having an epileptic fit. The adults around me were standing, watching him fit while I - all of fecking fifteen - called an ambulance and held his head down. Then afterwards I just couldn't stop shaking. Just couldn't stop.

optimistic_

krudler wrote: »

I've done that, the other week I was turning something over in the frying pan and I flipped it out of it by accident, so my stupidly natural instinct was to reach out and grab a sizzling hot piece of meat with my hand, genius.

Matron!

Fr_Dougal

Deleted User wrote: »

The best and safest solution would have been to throw water on it.


........

Actually the best solution would be to throw petrol on it, fight fire with fire. But make sure there's an adult supervising, children.

07Lapierre

bluewolf wrote: »

That was embarrassingly my first thought when my own wok went on fire. Thankfully only for a nanosecond before I copped on :rolleyes:
The kitchen is quite small so I took it off the heat, gave it a few seconds, then put it outside

We don't have a fire blanket...

U do have a fire blanket.....run a towel inder tap until its soaking wet and use it to cover the wok.

scheister

Slightly off topic but sure, i remember a few years ago in DIT Auniger st i was putting stuff away in the basement after clubs and soc's day fire alarm going off in the background no 1 taking any notice of it as always. until a voice comes over the intercom this is not a drill their is an actual fire will people leave the building.

Its at a bad state wen they have to actually tell u to leave a building when the fire alarm goes off

ITS_A_BADGER

I'd be ****e in an emergency, I was in a bar one night and this old man fell and whacked his head off the corner of the wall and sliced the skin off the side of his head, I just froze and Stared at him, thankfully there was much more helpful people in the pub that night and the man was looked after and eventually brought to hospital, wish I could have helped him instead of just standing there tho

FanadMan

Deleted User wrote: »

I get weirdly calm in emergency situations. Then I freak out and cry after.

That's so normal - adrenaline kicks in, your brain slows everything down and you can work clearly. Then when the adrenaline drops, so do you.

mud

Deleted User wrote: »

I get weirdly calm in emergency situations. Then I freak out and cry after.

Yep, I'm your woman when it comes to emergencies. I've experienced an armed robbery (I was behind the till), friends breaking limbs, kids going missing and a few other minor emergencies. I immediately go into that weird calm space and start doing whatever I can to fix the situation.

The crash when it comes is fairly severe though. Two days after I had a gun put to my head I got the WORST attack of collywobbles I've ever experienced!

Tonyandthewhale

I'm grand in an emergency, tend to stay pretty calm and rational and function fairly normally throughout.

It's furbies that get me - creepy little buggers give me the willies like no tomorrow.

Mr.Prodston

Tonyandthewhale wrote: »

I'm grand in an emergency, tend to stay pretty calm and rational and function fairly normally throughout.

It's furbies that get me - creepy little buggers give me the willies like no tomorrow.

I always wanted to know why the didn't have any...it all makes sense now.

Cody Pomeray

Deleted User wrote: »

After 20 years of listening to the smoke alarm going off over burnt toast, today it decided to take its time and wait until black smoke was filling the kitchen before beeping. Time to replace the smoke alarm.
What about the OH though.... she leaves the wok on the cooker on high heat with a bit of oil in it and decides to play with our daughters Furby. Wok catches fire. She stood there screaming and calling me.
I run downstairs to find her standing there looking at the wok burning, room filling with black smoke. Fire extinguisher and Fire Blanket less than 1 metre from burning wok.
I grabbed the wok and brought it out to the garden.
Do some people have no instincts on how to survive or deal with Emergencies? I asked her what she would have done if I wasnt there. She said she had no idea!

ain't nobody got time for that.

Deleted User

Deleted User wrote: »

The best and safest solution would have been to throw water on it.


........

I hope that's an AH answer :pac:
otherwise
err...NO!
not unless you want a fireball!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EYuQyup0A0M

darragh16

When I saw "Useless in an Emergency", I automatically thought of the Irish Army.

Ando's Saggy Bottom

I blame the Furby tbh.