West Fargo Fire Department warns of home electrical fires as winter marches on

Photo by: West Fargo Fire Department - Facebook
Photo by: West Fargo Fire Department - Facebook

(West Fargo, ND) -- The West Fargo Fire Department is issuing a reminder and some tips for home electrical fires, which usually peak during the winter months.

Some tips shared by the department from the U.S. Fire Administration include:

  • Plug only one heat-producing appliance directly into a wall outlet at a time.
  • Have a plan in place with you/your family in case of a fire.
  • Stay low: If you wake up to or have to work your way through heavy smoke, getting as low to the ground as possible will increase your chances to get out safely.

The administration adds that fire is hot, as expected. Temperatures can be up to 100 degrees on the floor, and up to 600 degrees at eye-level. They also say it can only take just a few minutes for a small fire started from an appliance or candle to spread thick black smoke throughout your home, which leads to more deaths in house fires than the blaze itself.

There are approximately 47,000 home electrical fires each year.

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