The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1930-10-10
RESEARCH Shows
OUT Of 100 BURNED
DIE IN DWELLINGS
Attic and Basement Two Con.
spicuous Places for Spon-
taneous Combustion
BOILERS ARE BIG FACTOR
Matches and Smoking Second
in Amount Of Property
Loss From Flames

Business men OF the United States
suffer IS per cent of all property loss
from fire, but the real danger to life.
according to the instance department
Of the United States Chamber Of Com
merce, is in the home. AS revealed
through the research of the fire 4aSu-
atty statistics committee of the ma
tional fire waste council. Sc per cent
of those who lost their lives in fires
and 48 per cent of all those injured
are in buildings Of the dwelling class.
Many dangerous practices prevalent
in the home are responsible for this
large percentage of life loss. Fire pre-
vention week is a particularly oppor-
tune time for each home owner to
make a critical inspection of his resi-
dence with a view toward eliminating
these hazards. The attic and base
ment, two conspicuous repositories of
dangerous and unsightly accumula-
tionS, should be as well ordered and
clean as the portions of the buildings
exposed to public gaze. Deposits Of
waste paper and debris of various sorts
facilitate the spread of fire, impede
the activities of firemen, and often
are the cause of fire through the me-
dunn of spontaneous ignition. Heating
plants of all types should be inspected
for defects. Pipes and breechings are
often burned or rusted through in in
conspicuous places and, unless a care
full examination is made, r revealed
only when a fire results.
Furnaces and Chimneys
All furnace pipes should be a safe
distance from combuStible material, OF
properly insulated where that is i'm
possible. Chimneys should be exam
ined and cleaned periodically. Care
must be exercised in the disposal of
ashes. The practice of using COM
bustible r~eceptacles OF piling ashes
against frame walls or on wood floors
is dangerous and should never be al
lowed.
The electric wiring should be in
spected for any indications Of defects.
If it seems to be in a hazardous con-
dition a competent electrician should
be procured to make a thorough in
yestigation. Light-cords should not be
suspended on nails, pipes, or other
metal surfaces. Fuses should be ex-
AHMED to see that all are in good
condition and that no makeshift has
oeen utilized which will nullify their
protective value.
Pressing irons, which cause a great
number of electrical fires, should be
used with the greatest care. The prac-
tice should be cultivated Of always
detaching the iron from the lighting
socket when not in use.
Unprotected fireplaces, kerosene,
gasoline, flammable polishes. oil mops,
matches, and cigarettes, cigars and
pipe tobacco ~carelessly thrown aside
while burning, are other predominant
ing causes of fatalities in the home.
Common Fire Hazards
Nine common fire hazards, most of
which are p~reventable, are responsible
for approximately 70 per cent OF the
total loss from fires of known origin.
Exposure from burning buildings
during conflagrations destroyed prop
erty up to the amount Of ISL 500, 700
in 1928. the last year for which COM
plete statistics are available. Matches
and smoking come second on the list
for an amount In excess Of $34,8O 0 900,
and defective chimneys and flues fol-
low with a loss Of approximately
$24, SOC, 1000. Other factors in fire
causes, and losses, were:
Boilers and their pipes.....$24.100.00 900
Misuse of Electricity, faulty
wiring, apparatus, etc.. 1S,6O0.0 900
Sparks on roofs. .......... 16,10O,000
Petroleum and it's products. 15,2OO,00O
Spontaneous combustion. 100000
The fact is frequently overlooked
that the actual property value de-
stroyed by fire is by no means the full
amount of the loss sustained when q
building or its contents burn, accord
cording to the insurance department
Of the Chamber Of Commerce of the
United States. The prosperous indus
try, which has built up its prestige
and increased its sales through years
of extensive advertising may, II de-
stxoyed by fire, face financial ruin
though reimbursement is received for