WASHINGTON — Kitchens can get cluttered when cooks are preparing big holiday meals, and that can lead to house fires.

“Cooking is the No. 1 thing that we see as a fire problem in Prince George’s County,” says Fire Chief Marc Bashoor.

A recent surprise visit by the fire department to a local home revealed how the sheer volume of holiday meals can create issues.

“They had so much stuff piled around the stove because they were cooking so many different things for so many people at once they had combustibles laying right on the burner for the stove and didn’t even know it, because all this stuff was pushed up around it,” says Bashoor.

The bustle of the holiday kitchen also can involve a lot of chopping and cutting and leaving knives lying around. Bashoor says people get hurt when knives fall off counters and stab them in the foot or in the leg.

“You really have to pay extra attention around the holidays, because you’re usually in a different mood and in a different mode and you’re not thinking about safety,” Bashoor warns.

So, once again, the basics:

• Don’t leave food cooking unattended.
• Keep your Christmas tree watered.
• Don’t run extension cords under rugs or furniture.
• Make sure power strips aren’t overloaded.
• Place space heaters at least 3 feet away from combustibles.
• And don’t leave candles burning unattended.