Fire officials talk how to stay safe while keeping warm

CAPE GIRARDEAU, Mo. (KBSI) – The risk of fires in the home increases during winter months. Local Missouri fire officials shared their fire safety advice with Fox 23.

Benton Fire Chief Joey Mack said working smoke detectors save lives.

“Almost every fire that I’ve been to that the residents got out of alive, there was smoke detectors involved,” Mack said.

The smoke detector battery should be changed every 6 months and the detector replaced every 10 years.

Space heaters are another big concern for fire officials. They say space heaters are safe to use, but make sure you’re using them correctly.

Space heaters should not be plugged into an extension cord – plug it directly into the wall outlet. Only one heat-producing appliance should be plugged into an electrical outlet at a time.

They recommend space heaters with tip-over shut off, so if it falls over it will automatically turn off to prevent a fire from occurring.

Keep anything that can burn at least three feet away from any heat source.

Cape Girardeau Fire Marshal Drew St. John said don’t hesitate to reach out if you’re concerned about electrical issues that could lead to a fire, things like a circuit breaker repeatedly tripping or light smoke coming from an outlet.

“Where there’s smoke, there’s heat,” he said. “The fire may not have started yet, but if there is smoke, likely there will be a fire eventually.”

St. John said don’t wait to see if a fire starts – call 911 and they can send people to investigate the cause of the smoke.

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