If Madigan Bans Sterno, How Will We Heat Our Fondue?

Calling it "over the counter napalm," Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan has started a campaign to have all gel fuels banned. 37 people nationwide have been burned by gel fuel, and 4 of them were in Illinois, leading Madigan to demand their recall. We're sure that caterers everywhere cried at the news - gel fuels are most commonly used for keeping chafing dishes hot during service.

The stories of burns, especially to children, are quite horrifying - according to NBC, the normal "stop, drop and roll" procedure just spreads the fire, and they printed some pretty heartbreaking pictures of burn victims. On the other hand, we'd be willing to bet that the number of people seriously burned by boiling water, or their gas stoves, is way higher. Perhaps the gel fuel should come with a warning? Or perhaps we're biased, as one of our favorite Chicago Classics would instantly be put out of business if such a ban was passed.

(Thanks to Kim Bellware for the headline!)

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By Anthony Todd in Food on August 11, 2011 11:30 AM

Comments [rss]

flametamer52

This issue is an even more severe problem with gel fuels in the food service industry where many more injuries occur with supposedly trained staff. Just ask any fire marshal and they well share a multitude of incidents. These types of products produce lethal emissions and contribute massive amounts of waste stream pollutants.
There are far safer alternatives that are more cost effective but the consumer and food service industry shut them out.

notphilfan

thank god someone finally addressed this dangerous situation; I sure am glad Lisa has our backs on this one! No wonder this fking state is bankrupt with pinhead morons like this one in charge!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Hey Lisa how did you get your job? Oh that's right your daddys little sperm all grown up, certainly that's is all it takes to qualify for a high paying political job in Illinois!

Moe Taibleson

Ban matches, cig lighters, propane, gasoline, alcohol, butane and anything else that burns. What a bunch of political idiots. While your at it....ban the sun too.

snoopoz

By the way, the best way to stir up anger over this is not something prissy like "How are we going to make fondue?" Try this: "Madigan wants to kill jobs with gel fuel ban."

ChicagoD

Madigan moves to ban best means to start vertical surfaces on fire.

Scott Frazer

Ok, this is a REALLY bad piece by NBC Chicago.

Here's a better overview of what's going on:

http://riverheadlocal.com/loca...

The recall that's already underway is for 2 particular brands of fire gel that are meant to go into matching "pots." 37 of those pots have exploded, 24 causing injuries. So yes, recall those suckers.

The problem isn't sterno in a can. It's pourable liquid fuel meant to go in a decorative pot. That turns into a frag grenade.

sat3911

Hey, you need to knock it off and leave the commenting to the professionals. I had a really great snarky comment that I had to throw out because of you and your "reading".

ChicagoD

Damn amateurs.

Navin_Johnson

So much for 'nanny state' hysteria. I'll just hand my "bronze" over to you.

ChicagoD

If only it were that easy.

Poor Navin. We'll always have Boing Boing.

Navin_Johnson

You're like a different person over there! Hehe.

ChicagoD

Yeah, because Antonius will ban you for . . . anything.

Navin_Johnson

You're right about the homemade napalm though. We used to make it when I was a kid by dissolving styrofoam in gas for hours.

erik75

"Mama says reading is the devil." Bobby Boucher, Waterboy

Kenny G Villacorta S

37 people *nationwide* were burned due to this gel fuel. Mrs. Madigan, there are close to 307million people in the United States.

4 people were burned in Illinois. Mrs. Madigan, there are 12 million people in Illinois.

No one died, and we do not know the severity of the burns.

Is this what the office of the AG been working on lately?

Applauds!

P.S. Can you make more white collar investigations? Much appreciated.

PieGrl

So four people are stupid/weren't watching their kids and the ENTIRE catering business has to suffer? Madigan is a fool- since when does she only represent those four people and not the rest of the state?

LogopolisMike

I feel for those who were burned, but four people? Really. The last time I ate fondue there were 2 more than that at our table. The last time I went to a catered event, there were 50 times more than that at the event. None of us were burnt. And multiply those by hundreds of thousands.

I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that the accident to car ratio is more or less the same as those who are exposed to this stuff and burned. When is AG Madigan gonna get rid of cars?

snoopoz

Although I'm not necessarily advocating for a ban, this stuff sounds like it can dangerous. A burning substance that sticks to my skin? No thanks.

That said, aren't there other ways to make fondue?

ChicagoD

It's hard to find something that burns like this stuff does. It is spread out and stays mostly blue (i.e. not super hot). Candles concentrate too much temperature in a single spot. There are electric warming trays that would probably do the trick, but the initial investment would be higher and you'd be tied to outlets.

ChicagoD

Dear AG Madigan, it took exactly 0.37 seconds for google to find an article to tell me how to make gel fuel at home. Maybe a warning, or some design change in the packaging would be more sensible than a ban . . .