Hearth chief Aaron Hanen recommends typical chimney cleansing and inspections as well as making sure islanders are burning dry, seasoned wooden in their fireplaces and wood stoves
Immediately after a few residence fires in 2020, Bowen Island hearth main Aaron Hanen bids islanders to ensure their chimneys are cleaned and inspected regularly.
The department attended two home fires that started off in chimneys final year.
A person hearth, which took position on Remembrance Day, was contained to the roof and the higher flooring of the residence, said Hanen. The other took place in the closing days of 2020 and was just in the chimney and attic place. “It was a incredibly, quite good help save by the crew,” mentioned Hanen.
In 2020 Bowen Island Hearth Rescue was equipped to quell two other chimney fires before they grew to become property fires.
The other house fireplace very last 12 months — in August in the Seven Hills spot — started from a BBQ. It was the only dwelling that burned just about to the floor previous yr.
The improve in chimney-similar fires (BIFR experienced only a person connect with out for a chimney fire in 2019) could have a little something to do with the pandemic, stated Hanen.
“We normally attempt to be well prepared, but it is amusing when you get that many phone calls like that,” reported Hanen. “We never know what it might be, but definitely I imagine extra men and women becoming home is heading to be aspect of the rationale.”
The principle is, with a lot more men and women property these days owing to the pandemic, people are burning much more wooden than standard and have maybe expended their supplies of dry wooden and have gone on to melt away moist or unseasoned wood, making additional creosote in the chimney.
To prevent the fires, chimney cleaning is important. “Definitely at the time a year, you should have someone skillfully cleaning and inspecting it,” said Hanen, introducing that some chimneys could also need extra repeated cleansing.
Burning dry, seasoned wooden was Hanen’s other suggestion.