DANGER OF FIRE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVIII, Issue 20840, 6 April 1931, Page 6

DANGER OF FIRE.

SOME COMMON CAUSES. the majority preventable advice from an expert. It is universally admitted that the annual fire loss of £1,500,000 in the Dominion is much too high from every point of view. The common causes of fire and how these may often easily he avoided are described in a statement prepared by Mr. W. L. Wilson, superintendent of the Auckland Brigade. Fires are often regarded as an inevitable visitation, but Mr. Wilson points out that fire brigade records of the causes of fires prove that most outbreaks a,re preventable. If a little more care was exercised the annual fire loss of the community could be considerably reduced. A large number of fires is caused through structural defects. In private houses beams aro found butted into the chimney and timber left under the hearth. In time the wood is reduced to tinder and it requires only a little extra heat to ignite it. Business premises several storeys high haye stairways, lift-wells, light-wells and unprotected windows that assist to spread a fire from floor to floor and from building to building. More care should be exercised to prevent the accumulation of inflammable rubbish. Light and heating services should be inspected in all their ramifications, and in any case of doubt the fire brigade is pleased to give expert advice freely. Electrical and Gas Fires. Electrical fires arise from many causes, which may bo summarised as fusing of wires through defective material, improper fuses, electric irons left switched on, flexible cords without properly insulated supports, lamps added to overloaded circuits, resistance coils on or near woodwork, and dust accumulating round the brushes of a motor. Nevertheless, electricity is not dangerous provided the best material is used. Mr. Wilson's advice is: Do not depend upon safety devices for electric irons, but cultivate the habit of always putting the iron on a wire stand. Do not add lights to a circuit without first consulting an electrician, and do not let dust accumulate on a motor. The majority of gas fires are caused through escaping gas. It is astonishing the number of people who seek to trace an escape of gas with a naked light, and find it, to their sorrow. The safest practice is to throw open all doors and windows, turn the meter off, and send for a gasfitter. Discard indiarubber tubing and replace it with flexible metal tubing with screw metal connections. Above all, do not place a sheet of iron on a wooden bench and think it is a safe protection for a gas ring. On the contrary, iron is a heat conductor, and it obscures what is taking place beneath. Whatever material is used between a gas ring and a wooden bench there should be at least half an inch of space between it and the wood. Dangers of Motor Spirit. The increased use of motor spirit has, of course, added to the fire risks in cities. Stringent regulations are in force to control the bulk storage of motor spirit, but it is retailed in small quantities and used for all kinds of purposes. The careless throwing of cigarette ends and matches causes many fires which could be avoided if these were simnly ground under foot or placed in a convenient receptacle. Hot ashes form another danger that could easily be avoided. They can be treated with water or placed in an iron receptacle with a lid on. Bubi bish fires should never be left unattended, as a slight breeze may carry a spark to a place where a fire will start. Fat, oil or tar should never be left on a stove or fire unattended. They are liable to boil over, and have been responsible for calling out the brigade on many occasions. Drying clothes before a fire has been the means of destroying many homes. Numerous fires have originated in washhouses through the common habit of using the copper fire as an incinerator and piling up rubbish in front of it.. A spark from the fire or a piece of wood left protruding may easily reach the rubbish. Oil, kerosene or spirits should never be used for lighting a fire, for this dangerous practice has cost many lives. Celluloid is a dangerous substance, and must be kept away from fire or naked lights. Spontaneous combustion is the process by which such substances as oily rags, damp straw and heaps of rubbish generate heat in themselves and finally break into fire. Candles left burning on a dressing table close to an open window, where a slight draught causes the curtains to blow on to the light are responsible for many fires. They often start, too, from someone having carried a candle about looking for something in a wardrobe or cupboard and having accidentally started clothes smouldering. Flimsy decorations, candles on Christmas trees and mantel drapings are obviously dangerous. Stove pipes, iron chimneys or hot water pipes should never be allowed to pass through wooden walls or ceilings.