subject: Space Heater Hazards [print this page] Its wintertimeIts wintertime. And that means hot apple cider, fuzzy earmuffs and a giant uptick in residential fires.
Last year in Boston, an apartment fire took the lives of two children: 8-year-old Rebecca Zizi and her 11-year-old brother Rooben. Boston Fire Chief Kevin MacCurtain blames the fire on a bedroom space heater. Although, family members insisted that the space heater was not on that night, the evidence tells a different story. Investigators concluded, based on the burn pattern, that the fire started inside the bedroom of the apartment. MacCurtain said that investigators searched for other ignition sources, such as a faulty electrical connection, but that the evidence led them back to the bedroom and the space heater.
As handy as it can be, a portable space heater may be the most deadly appliance in your home.
Do The Math
This was just one of several home fires that erupted in Boston that winter. Now take these tragic fires and multiply them times all of the cities and communities throughout our country. The number is staggering. According to the National Fire Protection Association, heating equipment is the second highest cause of home and apartment fires, as well as the second highest cause of fire-related fatalities. Home heating equipment includes central heating, fixed and portable space heaters and wood stoves. But of these, portable heaters (both propane and electric) accounted for 46 percent of the total deaths resulting from heating equipment fires.
Space Heater Varieties
Portable space heaters come is several varieties: electric, propane and gas. An electric fireplace is actually nothing more than a big, decorative space heater. Each type of space heater is used to provide warmth to a room, object or person and can be quite beneficial because they are generally compact and easy to move from room to room.
Space Heater Safety Tips
To protect your family from this sort of tragedy, exercise extreme caution when using a space heater. Here are a few tips:
1) Keep space heaters at least three feet from bedding, curtains, upholstered furniture and paper products.
2) Warm your bedroom before going to bed, then shut the heater off. Use your blankets for warmth while you sleep.
3) Turn off whenever you leave the house.
4) Only use a space heater that has been approved for safety by Underwriters Laboratory.
5) Read and follow the manufacturers instructions.
6) Never use an extension cord.
7) Install fire detectors on each floor of your home.
8) If you use a gas space heater, install a carbon monoxide detector in your home. Gas space heaters can emit carbon monoxide. It is colorless, odorous and deadly.
9) Keep toddlers away from space heaters to avoid burns.
10) Keep the fire department number on hand at all times.
Safe and warm
Exercising caution in your use of portable space heaters can save both lives and property. Keeping warm is important, but staying safe is more important. Print out this article and tape it to your refrigerator. Who knows? It could save a life.
