Fall may have just started, but the Wichita Fire Department is urging residents to start prepping their houses for "home heating season."
Wichita Fire Chief Ron Blackwell says the department typically sees an increase in house fires during the winter months when people start using their heating systems. There have already been four fatal house fires in Wichita this year, he says: two caused by smoking, and two whose causes have yet to be determined.
Speaking at the mayor’s weekly briefing Thursday, Blackwell encouraged residents to prepare their homes for winter and minimize the risk of fires.
“I would encourage the community to do everything they can to ensure their home heating systems have been checked and where there needs to be repairs, that there be repairs," he said.
Kansas law requires all residences to have smoke alarms. The Wichita Fire Department helps provide and install smoke alarms for homes that need them. And, as part of Fire Prevention Month in October, the Red Cross is partnering with local fire departments and organizations to install smoke alarms in homes in Sedgwick and neighboring counties.
Below is the schedule for the Red Cross' home fire campaign:
- Wichita-Oaklawn: Oct. 1
- Newton: Oct. 1
- Coffeyville: Oct. 1
- Augusta: Oct. 15
- Hutchinson: Oct. 22
--
Follow Nadya Faulx on Twitter @NadyaFaulx.
To contact KMUW News or to send in a news tip, reach us at news@kmuw.org.
