Which class of fire involves combustible cooking oils?

Which class of fire involves combustible cooking oils?

• A. Class C
• B. Class D
• C. Class K
• D. Class O

Answer: (C)

Fires involving cooking oils require a extinguishing method tailored to fats and oils because water or standard extinguishers can make things worse. For kitchen oil fires, the best choice is a Class K extinguisher. It uses a wet chemical agent that saponifies fats, turning the oil into a soapy layer that cools the oil and creates a barrier between fuel and air, smothering the fire and helping prevent reignition. Water would cause violent splattering and spreading, so it’s avoided on oil fires. The other options correspond to different types of fires—electrical fires, burning metals, or a nonstandard category—so they don’t fit cooking oil fires as well as Class K does.

Fires involving cooking oils require a extinguishing method tailored to fats and oils because water or standard extinguishers can make things worse. For kitchen oil fires, the best choice is a Class K extinguisher. It uses a wet chemical agent that saponifies fats, turning the oil into a soapy layer that cools the oil and creates a barrier between fuel and air, smothering the fire and helping prevent reignition. Water would cause violent splattering and spreading, so it’s avoided on oil fires. The other options correspond to different types of fires—electrical fires, burning metals, or a nonstandard category—so they don’t fit cooking oil fires as well as Class K does.