Freeze warnings issued for Central Coast
As freeze warnings are issued for parts of the Central Coast, people are stocking up on heaters to beat the frosty temperatures.
“It’s colder,” said Joseline Beltran. “Especially when it started raining. It’s like really cold.”
While some are looking for ways to stay warm, the Salinas Fire Department is getting ready for what the chilly winter months bring, which is an uptick in structure fires.
“Getting some training on this abandoned building just before they demo it,” said Patrick McBrian with the Salinas Fire Department. “Getting some practice in before the big structure fire season starts. Just practicing some of the skills we don’t get to practice every day.”
According to the National Fire Protection Association, heating equipment is the second leading cause of home fires in the U.S. during the winter.
“People forget about it, move furniture during the summer months and then start turning on the heaters and things like that during the cold fronts,” said McBrian. “Then that’s when you start to get a lot of the fires this time of the season.”
Reports said oftentimes space heaters are the culprit, accounting for nearly 85 percent of home heating fire deaths.
Firefighters said prevention can be as easy as keeping heaters on even leveled surfaces and away from flammable materials.
“Making sure you have combustible materials, couches, clothes, things like that a couple of feet away from the heaters,” said McBrian.
They also advise having working carbon monoxide alarms spread throughout the home. The Salinas Fire Department said if you start hearing a beeping sound from your carbon monoxide detector don’t just ignore it. Give them a call and they’ll come check it out.
