The London Fire Brigade has urged carers to stop using flammable skin creams amid a surge in blazes across care homes.
People who use emollient products to treat skin conditions such as eczema have been told they can build up in fabrics and cause them to catch fire more easily.
Most emollient creams can be readily bought off the shelf from any supermarket, prescribed by a chemist, or ordered online.
However, the creams — which contain paraffin, petroleum and natural oils — can seep into clothes and bedding, making them more susceptible to catching alight.
It is also believed that the products, which are popular among older people, can act like a wick if ignited.
The LFB specifically cited the tragic case of Cedric Skyers, 69, who was killed three days after celebrating his birthday at Manley Court Nursing Home in New Cross, Lewisham.
Mr Skyers, who enjoyed poetry and smoking, accidentally dropped a cigarette while unattended and became engulfed in flames on March 13, 2016.
An investigation into Mr Skyers’ death nine years ago found that although a smoking risk assessment had been undertaken, it did not consider the use of emollient creams that was applied to him.
The LFB brought a prosecution against BUPA Care Services, which runs the care home, after Mr Skyers’ fatal injury on John Williams Close, Brockley.
BUPA pleaded guilty to not meeting their statutory obligations in relation to fire safety measures and was ordered to pay a record amount for safety failings.
The company was fined £937,500 for fire safety failings and ordered to pay £104,000 prosecution costs at Southwark Crown Court in January 2022.
A decade after Mr Skyers death, the LFB have called for improved awareness of the dangers of flammable skin creams.
A spokesman said: “The Brigade is urging care home providers and carers to switch to non-flammable emollient creams which don’t contain paraffins, petroleum or natural oils.
“Care homes should also ensure that every resident has a plan in place that accounts for their use of cigarettes, skin creams and oxygen equipment.”
Assistant Commissioner Craig Carter added: “Every resident should have a plan in place which accounts for their mobility, their use of cigarettes, flammable skin creams and oxygen equipment.
To lose Dad in such a horrific incident has been devastating
“Care home staff can help to keep residents safe by encouraging them not to smoke, especially if they could drop their cigarette, become disoriented, or tend to fall asleep while smoking.
“We’re urging care home providers and carers to seek support and utilise the resources on the London Fire Brigade website to ensure they have taken the necessary precautions to keep their residents safe."
The force has also written to the Care Quality Commission requesting urgent action as fires in care homes and supported living facilities reached a three-year high last December.
It followed an increase in care homes from 11 to 41 compared to the previous month, with smoking and cooking the leading causes.
Mr Skyers’ son David commented: “To lose Dad in such a horrific incident has been devastating for all of us. We really want to make sure this doesn’t happen again, so nobody else loses a much-loved father, grandfather and friend in such an awful way.”
