House firesare dangerous no matter when they happen, but they definitely become more common as the temperature dips.
Fire Administrationestimates that about 890 people die in winter house fires each year.
Today, she notes, you could have as few astwo minutes.
Getty Images. Graphic by Cristina Cianci
Here are a few tips for staying safe.
1. check that you have working smoke alarms.
Its the first thing thats going to let you know that theres a fire.
If your smoke alarms double as carbon monoxide detectors, youre also protected against another safety threat.
Heating is the second leading cause of U.S. home fires, injuries, and deaths, theNFPAsays.
Space heaters accounted for 86 percent of the deaths in these incidents.
You shouldnt be running it all night long.
Dont leave cooking unattended.
As such, she advises people to be extra careful when theyre cooking anything on the stove.
Stay in the kitchen; pay attention to what youre cooking, she says.
Dont use your oven as a source of heat.
Kozo says it could easily cause carbon monoxide to build up in your house.
Clean out your dryers lint trap.
(The other dryer and washer fires were mainly due to mechanical and electrical malfunctions.)
Avoid using extension cords with anything that produces heat or cool air.
That also goes for things like toaster ovens, microwaves, or refrigerators.
[Plugging them in the wall] can prevent electrical fires.
As convenient as extension cords may seem, you really should be careful with how you use them.
Dont leave candles unattended or within a foot of anything flammable.
Candles are pretty but also pretty hazardous.
They started 36 percent of decoration-related home fires between 2011 and 2015, according to anNFPAreport.
Thats fine as long as you implement some simple safety tips.
You just want to practice some precautions with a flame candle, Kozo says.
You should extinguish it once its burning within two inches from the holder.
If it burns all the way down, the holder can get hot and catch fire.
You should also put out any flames when you leave a room and before you go to sleep.
As they say, its better to be safe than sorry.
If you have a fireplace, dispose of the ashes safely.
