Fire House Facts

08/01/2012 | Kayla Holiman, Fire Inspector

The Yuma Fire Department responded to 204 emergency calls for service

• 7 Commercial Assignments
  Including: An outlet smoking at a grocery store, a cooler overheating and smoking at a business, smoke inside of a business, and various alarms

• 7 Motor Vehicle Crashes

• 175 Other Medical Emergencies (serious to minor)
  Including: 3 for difficulty breathing, 5 for chest pain, 18 fall victims, 6 unconscious people, 3 seizure cases, 21 people with psychiatric problems, 35 trauma injuries, 6 diabetic emergencies, 1 choking person, 2 allergic reactions, and other illnesses and injuries

• 15 Special Duty, Public Assistance, and Residential Assignments
  Including: a charred electrical panel at a residence, an electrical smell coming from a dishwasher, the smell of natural gas in a residence, a blown transformer, and various alarms

Electrical Safety

Last week, several of YFD’s fire responses were for electrical fires in homes and businesses. According to the United States Fire Administration, 420 Americans died and 1520 more were injured in 2010 in home structure fires involving electrical failure or malfunction. Causes vary from electrical system failures or appliance defects, to the misuse and poor maintenance of electrical appliances, incorrectly installed wiring, and overloaded circuits and extension cords. During a typical year, home electrical problems account for 46.500 fires, and $1.5 billion in property losses. Home electrical wiring causes twice as many fires as electrical appliances and most electrical wiring fires start in the bedroom.

Some safety precautions you can take include:

• Regularly check your electrical appliances and wiring.
• Replace all worn, old, or damaged appliance cords.
• Do not overload extension cords, or run them under rugs or carpets.
• When buying electrical appliances look for products approved of by nationally recognized laboratories like Underwriter’s Laboratories (UL).
• Shut off, and professionally replace, light switches that are hot to the touch and lights that flicker.

And remember, a properly installed and maintained smoke alarm can dramatically increase your chances of surviving a fire.

For More Information

If you have questions or need more information, please contact Mike Erfert or Kayla Holiman at 373-4850.