Fire Safety

House fires are a leading cause of injury, death and property loss throughout our country. Protect your family. Every home should have working smoke detectors on each level and in each bedroom. Remember to change your smoke detector batteries every time you change your clocks, when the time changes (Daylight Savings Time).

Carbon monoxide detectors can provide additional protection. Carbon monoxide is an odorless, colorless gas that can cause serious injury or death. Any device that burns natural gas, gasoline or other combustible fossil fuel materials can produce it - including motor vehicles, furnaces, water heaters, lawn mowers, snow throwers and charcoal grills.

Open Burning

Please keep in mind that it is against the law to burn yard waste, trash or other items in open fires on residential, business and public property. Violators may pay up to a $1,000 fine and spend up to six months in jail.

This prohibition includes fires in chimineas or in other commercially sold fire pits and rings.

The only exception to the open-burning law is for outdoor fires that are used exclusively for cooking purposes - to roast hot dogs or to grill hamburgers, for example.

People using outdoor cooking fires, however, have an obligation to see that these fires are properly contained, are used in a supervised manner and are completely extinguished when cooking is completed.

For detailed fire safety information to protect your family and home, go to

www.usfa.fema.gov

and click on "Fire Safety for Citizens."