Protect Yourself From Home Heating Hazards This Winter
News Release: November 16, 2004
Contact: Janice Osborne, Director-Communications and Marketing
(610) 865-4400, ext. 262
With a dramatic rise in apartment and house fires during the cold weather months, the American Red Cross urges families to stay safe in their efforts to stay warm.
Home heating hazards are typically to blame. According to the National Fire Protection Association, four out of seven home fires occur during the coldest months of December, January and February, and about half of these fires are caused by using candles and overloading electrical circuits. With temperatures dropping early this year, many families are turning to alternative heating sources out of necessity or to avoid the rising cost of oil and gas. The Red Cross encourages families to take the following precautions:
Be aware of overuse of electrical outlets — Don't overload your electrical outlets. Be careful of extension cords that present hazardous walkways.
Be cautious with portable space heaters — Place space heaters at least three feet away from anything combustible, including wallpaper, bedding, clothing, pets, and people. Never leave space heaters operating when you are not in the room or when you go to bed. Don't leave children or pets unattended with space heaters, and be sure everyone knows that drying wet mittens or other clothing over space heaters is a fire hazard.
Be careful with candles — Do not use candles for lighting if the power goes out. Use flashlights only. Keep candles away from combustible materials. Don't leave children or pets unattended in a room with lit candles. Keep candles, matches and lighters out of the reach of children. Never display lighted candles in windows or near exits.
Inspect fireplaces and wood stoves — Have your chimney connections and flues inspected by a professional and cleaned if necessary prior to the start of every heating season. Use a sturdy screen when burning fires. Burn only wood -- never burn paper or pine boughs. Do not hang holiday decorations from or on your fireplace if you plan to use it as a heat source.
Check smoke detectors — Make sure detectors are working properly and that new batteries are installed.
Use generators carefully — If you have a portable generator and the power goes out, always plan to keep the generator outdoors; never operate it inside, including the basement or garage. Do not hook up a generator directly to your home's wiring. The safest thing to do is to connect the equipment you want to power directly to the outlets on the generator. Connecting a cord from the generator to a point on the permanent wiring system and back feeding power to your home is an unsafe method to supply a building with power.
Create a Disaster Supplies Kit — Get together lifesaving items in both your home and vehicle. Go to www.redcross.org for a list of materials.
Use clothes and blankets to build layers against the cold — Have extra blankets, scarves, hats and sweaters on hand, and ensure that each member of your household is ready with a warm coat, gloves or mittens, hat, and water-resistant boots when you go outside.
For more valuable information on preparing for cold weather, call the American Red Cross of the Greater Lehigh Valley at (610) 865-4400 or visit www.redcrosslv.org.
The American Red Cross is a humanitarian organization, led by volunteers, that provides relief to victims of disasters and helps people prevent, prepare for and respond to emergencies.
The American Red Cross of the Greater Lehigh Valley serves more than 660,000 residents in Lehigh, Northampton and Carbon counties. Last year the Red Cross provided health and safety education training and emergency relief services to more than 20,000 Greater Lehigh Valley residents. For more information or volunteer opportunities, visit www.redcrosslv.org.
