MINNESOTA WINTER HAZARD AWARENESS WEEK TIP FROM THE POLK COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE

The Wednesday tip for Minnesota Winter Hazard Awareness Week deals with home fire safety. Polk County Deputy Cole Lundeen says monitoring fires, space heaters, and cooking is the best way to avoid a fire or injury. “In the winter months our heating, lighting, cooking, and holiday activities increase dramatically, and with them the risk of residential fires,” said Lundeen.  “The high cost of heating fuels and utilities have caused many Americans to search for alternative methods of home heating.   Wood burning stoves are growing in popularity and space heaters are selling rapidly or coming out of storage.  Fireplaces are burning wood and man-made logs.  All of these methods of heating may be acceptable but without caution, they are a major contributing factor to residential fires.  With cooking, families, and guests tend to gather in the kitchen but it can be the most hazardous room in the house if you don’t practice safe cooking behavior.  Careless use of cooking equipment, usually a range or stove stop, is the leading cause of home fires and home fire injuries in the United States.  Always have someone watching the stove.”