# Coals went out overnight



## chrisn1982 (Jul 4, 2021)

Good morning! So I started smoking 2 pork butts last night at 9pm and kept the temp between 250 and 300 constantly. Around 2:00 I reset the new coals, got the temp to a constant 250 and went to bed. I overslept a bit and woke up at 6:45 to find the smoker out and temp down to 0. I immediately restarted the coals and got the cooker going again. Is the meat safe? I think it is as the temp had to have hit 140 in the length it cooked and it’s unlikely it sat 2 hours at an unsafe temp but what do y’all think?


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## chef jimmyj (Jul 4, 2021)

You are fine. In the time spend over 250°F, 6+hours,  all bacteria, inside and out, have been eliminated...JJ


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## bigfurmn (Jul 4, 2021)

If you didn't inject it with anything it should be fine. I am sure Chef Jimmy will be around any second now to double check that.
Edit... Chef Jimmy posted while I was typing.


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## chrisn1982 (Jul 4, 2021)

Thanks guys!


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## jcam222 (Jul 4, 2021)

Chris I’ll add that if you plan on doing overnight smokes often a wireless thermometer with temp alarms is darn near a mandatory cooking tool. The overnight temp drop bet it coal, electric or other is a really common occurrence from time to time. You can set the alarm for a low temp alert to get you up to address the issues. These type thermometers can be had anymore for about the same price as a good size chuck roast or pack of chicken :) Inkbird here often runs specials making them super affordable.


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