BBQ party tonight

I'm still stunned by the stupidity of people. Every day. 🙁

The alert says disposable bbqs, which people tend to put directly on the ground and don't both discarding properly. As long as youre careful a normal bbq will be fine.

I'd say the risk of a fire happening is far higher from people simply tossing cigarette stubs away than it is from garden BBQs, but are they banning people from smoking everywhere, even in their own gardens?

However, as people have pointed out, continuing with your barbecue may not cast you in a good light with your neighbours, and you might want to consider that if something did go wrong, it'll probably stretch a fire service that is already exhausted in some areas.

Exactly we used to live in rural Victoria and they would still have BBQs in fire season they just manage them safely.

Mumsnet turns into people trying to outdo each other with how fire safe they are being.
A gas BBQ on a patio with clear zone around it, is perfectly safe.
Nothing is zero risk, cooking on your hob inside carries some risk, why don’t we all eat cold food for the next few weeks.

The government guidance does not ban BBQs at home, it just says to not leave them unattended. I can’t imagine many people do that anyway.

Bit too late for that.

They also have different plants and terrain to UK in many of the hottest areas, plants which have evolved to live in hot, dry climates don’t dry out as quickly in heat and hold water during periods of drought. A big issue in the uk is so many plants and especially the grass, which is everywhere, are not designed for hot climates, they don’t hold water well within their cells and they have dried out to basically be straw which can very easily be ignited.

Also, Australia has had some pretty horrific wild fires in past years too!

You’re not funny.
The heathland near to me burnt to cinders. All the wildlife, the habitats, the the trees- gone and never to grow back.

To be fair you probably shouldn't.

This is what I’m talking about - ‘yes, that rule was bonkers’. And yet people policed themselves and neighbours with passionate zeal, despite it protecting no one at all.

@DyslexicPoster

it doesn’t include garden BBQ’s but just like with Covid people do like to read more into a statement than is there. I don’t even own a bbq so no skin in this but anyone should be able to comprehend that a gas bbq on a stone patio. Is very different to a disposable bbq on dry grass!

She said she's not a moron, so obviously not.

I better not have a fag in the back garden. Neighbours could end up having a nervous breakdown.

"any activity that could start a fire"

They probably hoped adults wouldn't need every activity listed.

Cook in the kitchen. Really not worth the risk & also you are likely to get Karen’s in the neighbourhood who will report you.

you can still have your party albeit not a BBQ!

You sound like the sort of person who would invite twelve people round during Covid but say it was okay because you sitting in two separate groups of 6 (back then that was a thing). Yes that rule was a bit bonkers but it was indicative of a wider disdain for doing anything that inconvenienced you in favour of the greater good.

covid was obviously a shit show - but we don’t need people to be finding reasons to do things that are obviously unsafe under the guise of it’s not been explicitly banned. Use your brain.

You can have a household bbq, the only thing that is on the new government issued edict is:

never leave a household barbecue unattended and ensure it is fully extinguished after use.

which you need to be silly to do in the first place!

id also have a bucket of water next to it and personally I would only do one on concrete

For me it’s about risk vs reward

the risk is that yours, and your neighbours houses go up in flames and that risk is heightened at the moment

the reward is that you get a bbq with food cooked outdoors rather than indoors.

i think the risk far outweighs the reward and anyone who can’t see that is part of the problem

The people asking if they shouldn't use BBQs are probably the same people asking if they can look at the sun or not during the eclipse
So no, DO NOT USE ANYTHING WITH A FLAME OR SPARK

We have a bbq planned for today but I’m using the oven instead for the sausages and chicken, and having pizzas insured of burgers. We do live very close to a park and there is abit of a wind here today so it would only take a few hot ashes to blow a few metres and the whole area could catch fire. There was a huge wild fire not far from us the other day and the park close to us is like straw right now!

That’s not for you to calculate though is it?
Why do you think you’re better than the advice given or have more fire understanding than the FBU?

Does the alert seriously expand to BBQ in your own garden? That's not how I read it, neither did I take the bbc coverage that way.

We rarely do bbq but it's gas. But got no more planned imminently. Next door do a bbq every Sunday without fail.

I guess there is always three camps on government imposed restriction in times of crisis.

Follow the guidelines

Add extra restrictions on top of your own invention.

Decide they don't apply to you at all.

So much for the "I'd never follow another lockdown!" Type policy.

Personally we have decided to be extra cautious and have disconnected the gas and electricity at mains and just eating dried pasta ( no salad as no fridge). Dh pointed out the car has a combustion engine which technically is a spark outside ( the worse news ever) so will be walking the 30 mile round trip to work on foot come Monday.

Not necessarily just your house. 19 houses destroyed in Stourbridge and others severely damaged.

Should probably tell the alert people that because they didn’t seem to think banning bbqs in their entirely was necessary 🤷‍♀️

We all put restrictions on ourselves - speed limits, seat belts, food hygiene rules.

Humans have always done it, it's about avoiding death/harm and protecting the group.

Not having a BBQ for a fortnight isn't a big restriction, I'd just do something else equally enjoyable.

Some people are not very comfortable with changing plans, so it upsets them more. That's also a common human response - resisting change, fearing restriction.

And neighbours. So not really fair to make that decision on their behalf.