TEACHER ANSWER KEY DOC: FST-2026-A-KEY
PART 3 – CLASS K & KITCHEN FIRES
9. What type of fire is a Class K extinguisher specifically designed to fight?
Fires involving cooking oil, fats, grease (K = Kitchen)
10. What type of extinguishing agent does a Class K extinguisher use?
Alkaline wet chemical solution (potassium acetate)
11. Explain how the wet chemical in a Class K extinguisher helps stop a cooking-oil fire.
Saponification: The wet chemical reacts with hot fat to form a soapy, flame-stifling foam barrier.
Cooling Effect: The mist cools the surrounding media to drop it below flashpoint temperature.
Critical Response Protocol
12. 🚨 TRUE or FALSE: You should use water to put out a grease fire.
TRUE FALSE
Explain your answer (Key):
Water immediately flashes to steam underneath grease, expanding by 1,700 times and explosively
throwing droplets of burning oil everywhere, rapidly spreading the fire and causing severe burns.
PART 4 – PASS METHOD
13. When operating an extinguisher, what does the tactical acronym PASS stand for?
P – PULL
Pull the Pin
A – AIM
Aim at Base
S – SQUEEZE
Squeeze Lever
S – SWEEP
Sweep Side-to-Side
14. Where should you aim the nozzle?
At the top of the flames
At the base of the fire
At the ceiling
Toward another person
15. Why is it important to have a clear exit path behind you before attempting to fight a small fire?
If the fire grows out of control or the extinguisher fails, you must have an unblocked
escape route to evacuate safely without becoming trapped.
Culinary Safety Institute • Manual Section A (KEY) Page 2 of 3
Culinary Arts & Emergency Preparedness
TEACHER ANSWER KEY DOC: FST-2026-A-KEY
PART 5 – WHAT WOULD YOU DO? (SCENARIOS)
SCENARIO 1
16. A pan of cooking oil catches fire on the stove. List two appropriate actions you could take.
Action A:
Slide a tight-fitting metal lid over pan
Action B:
Immediately turn off burner/heat source
SCENARIO 2
17. A trash can containing paper and cardboard catches fire. What type of extinguisher should be used?
Class A extinguisher (or general ABC multi-purpose fire extinguisher)
SCENARIO 3
18. You discover a fire inside a commercial oven. What should you do?
Turn off the oven immediately to cut heating energy.
Keep the door closed to starve the fire of fresh oxygen. Do not open the door!
19. Safety Challenge: List three things a culinary student can do to help prevent fires in a commercial kitchen.
PREVENTATIVE 1:
Clean hoods of oil/grease
PREVENTATIVE 2:
Keep towels off prep ranges
PREVENTATIVE 3:
Never leave hot pans unattended
20. Professional Reflection: In your own words, explain why preventing a kitchen fire is safer than fighting one.
Prevention eliminates all risk before a threat materializes, saving lives, equipment, and structural
integrity. Active firefighting carries high risks of toxic smoke, flashover, grease explosion, and severe burns,
making mitigation before ignition the ultimate industry-standard safety practice.
Culinary Safety Institute • Manual Section A (KEY) Page 3 of 3
