Local fire officials are offering some tips to remain safe in the winter months.
Weirton Fire Chief Dave Lashhorn said the winter season is often a busy season for the fire department because houses need to be kept warm. He stated individuals planning to use a portable or fixed space heater this winter to offset high heating bills need to use extreme caution.
According to reports from the West Virginia Fire Marshal's office, in the month of October 2009, six fire deaths in West Virginia are thought to have been caused by misuse or malfunction of space heaters. The report also stated last year in West Virginia, heating equipment fires ranked second only to cooking fires in terms of frequency, with 444 known heating fires comprising 14 percent of the state's reported 8,202 fires.
The National Fire Protection Association references heating equipment as a leading cause of home fires in West Virginia during the months of December, January and February.
"All types of common space heating equipment are involved in home fires," said Lashhorn.
Lashhorn said portable electric heaters, portable kerosene heaters, wood stoves, fireplaces with inserts and room gas heaters are among the most common. He said central home heating systems are not a large part of the total heating fire problem, but space heaters are a different story.
"Giving space heaters space, placing them three feet away from anything that can burn, and paying close attention whenever any supplemental heating device is in use can drastically reduce these types of fires," stated Carol Nolte, Deputy State Fire Marshall. "Room gas heaters, portable kerosene heaters and portable electric heaters have the greatest risk of death and room gas heaters pose a similar risk of death from unvented carbon monoxide."
Nolte added wood stoves or fireplaces with inserts have the greatest risk of property damage from fire.
Lashhorn noted several leading causes of space heater fires include a lack of regular cleaning, leading to creosote build-up in wood-burning devices and associated chimneys and connectors; basic flaws in the construction or design of wood-burning heating equipment; and fueling errors involving liquid- or gas-fueled heating equipment.
Safety tips issued from the West Virginia State Fire Marshal's office state when buying a new unit, make sure that a qualified technician installs the unit or checks that the unit has been installed properly, and that it carries the mark of an independent testing lab - such as Underwriters Laboratory.
"Look for safety features such as automatic shut-off if the heater is tipped over, and cool-to-touch design," said Nolte, "and for wood or coal stoves or fireplaces, have a professional inspect the chimney, chimney connector and other related equipment every year, and have them cleaned as often as the inspections indicate."
Lashhorn said individuals should never leave portable space heaters unattended and should be turned off every time they leave the house or go to bed.
(Dickson can be contacted at adickson@weirtondailytimes.com)
