Pet Fire Safety

4/10/2019 (Permalink)

We think of fire damage mostly in the winter, because some Winston Salem folks use wood stoves and fire places for heat.  But because we normally eat three meals a day, we cook and therefore have a risk of fire anytime of the year. Unattended cooking fires are the leading cause of fires in the home according to the NFPA.

We also have a risk during a power outage. Rather than use flashlights we use candles and lanterns during these extended periods without power. However the top three days for candle fires in the home are New Year's Day, Christmas, and New Year's Eve. Fire fighters across the US responded to approximately 8200 fires started by a candle each year between the years of 2012-2016. 60% or 3 out of 5 were because the candle was too close to combustible materials.

Pets can cause fires also, Preventative Vet reported in 2016 that pets started 1000 house fires. That’s more than 10% of the fires first responders were called out to put out.  The biggest tip SERVPRO of West Forsyth can give you is never leave flames or cooking devices unattended. Be sure to reduce the number of cords that your pet and especially puppies can get to. Coat exposed cords with a deterrent like a bitter spray. If you do use candles ensure that the animal can’t jump up near it or tip it over. Dogs are attracted to food, couple food near a gas stove and you have a recipe for disaster.

We hope that you never have to deal with a fire loss, or worse the loss of a pet due to fire. But if fire affects your home or business call us directly at 336-946-1131