Posted on: November 27, 2024 - 12:20pm

Thanksgiving Safety Message from our Fire Marshal JD Pepper

Happy Thanksgiving from Timber Mesa Fire and Medical and from the Community Risk Reduction and Fire Prevention Division. As we enter the holiday season as a community, there are many things on our minds and our schedules, and it is easy to overlook some very important safety items. Thanksgiving is the number one day across the United States for home fires with approximately 1700 homes on average going up in flames. Fires cause injuries, deaths and property damage, as well as emotional and physical scars. Christmas and Christmas eve follow Thanksgiving Day for the number of home fires in the US. Here are a few things you can do in your home to make this holiday season safe and memorable.

1. Check and change your home smoke alarm batteries. This is the number one thing you can do in your home and it’s fairly easy. Smoke alarms are good for 10 years. Replace them when necessary.

2. Keep pot and pan handles on the stove turned away from the edge so the little ones cannot grab them and pull the hot contents down onto themselves.

3. Have your chimney swept. Wood stove fires and chimney fires are a large contributor to home fires every year in our area. Once a year, have your wood fire heat sources cleaned and checked.

4. Keep heating elements like space heaters away from your blankets, papers and curtains. Any competent heat sources are likely to cause a fire if they are within a close distance to an easy to ignite products such as these.

5. Store your wood ash and embers in a metal container outside and not on a wooden deck.

From the TMFMD family to yours, we wish you a blessed Thanksgiving.

J.D. Pepper

Fire Marshal                                                              

Timber Mesa Fire and Medical