With the winter season approaching, fire
safety facts and tips are of utmost importance.
Each year 3,500 Americans are killed and 18,300
are injured due to fires, and people living in rural areas are twice as likely
to die or be injured in a fire as those living in the suburbs.
More than 60 percent of West
Virginians live in rural areas and the number of fires increases
every year between the months of November and April.
The United States Fire Administration has put
together a list of steps to help better educate and protect Americans from
fires.
The steps are as follows:
·
Every 12 months your furnace should be
inspected at least once.
·
Your vents and chimneys should be
cleaned yearly.
·
Check for creosote build-up.
·
Use dry, seasoned wood.
·
Use a proper fireplace screen, either
metal or tempered glass.
·
Use a cover metal container to dispose
of ashes.
·
Never let young children within 3 feet
of the fireplace or wood/pellet stove.
·
All portable heaters should have an
automatic shut-off.
·
All portable heaters need to be
plugged directly into an outlet.
·
Always remember to check the heater
before you go to bed.
·
Make sure smoke alarms work properly.
·
Make sure carbon monoxide alarms work
properly.
