The Waterbury Democrat., 1935-10-04

Joint nhLlOuWluS 1""'s A-s. National Board of Fire Underwrit, CTS. the International Association ol Electrical Inspectors and Ihrs' group of manufacturers Of wirei e.,A cables. will be devoted for tht haIance of the year 1885 to rcdnc- f1on of fires and injuries caused pS eareIessness in the use of electrica, wiring. This fact was announced fo-day by Inspector Martin C. O,Rofirke of Electrical Inspector Department. .,,ro.
 The safety campaign of the three vroups, who outlined their cooper alive plan at a recent three-eorher,I ed conference in New York, VIII reach its high point in the course of Fire Prevention Week, to be ops eeryed throughout the United States from October 9th to l2th'
 "Handyman"
 Tine safety campaign, said In- snecfor O'Rourke will be devoted in a large measure, to presenting fo fhe public information relating fn the dangers which lie Tn the use of hanyman" wiring, defective de" viees and uninspected electrical ln- 
 stalIations.
 Tnspector O'Rourke pointed oui that the electrical inspector bureau intends to inteDsiVely cam phiBh against the misuse of electric sery' fca and in his first conference with a group of electrical contractors he stated some of the following facts relating to Safeguarding Electrlcal Service in the home.
 sIn all of the misuses of cleo frical service which are likely tt cause fire and injury in the home office and factory, there is no great CT menace than the use of frayed or dangerously made electric cord Hundreds upon thousands of house wives. daily, fiirt with accident and fire in operating irons, lamps and other appliances with cords which belong in the rubbish heap.
 "Without any purpose, save tt safeguard electric service in the home, the National Board of Fire Underwriters has authorized the use on approved electrical cords oi small band which certifes that the cord bearing it had bene properly manufactured and inspected TOT safety.
 Approved Cords
 gro make the public cord and wiring conscious; to influence the buyer to insist on approved safe cord and other devices, is one of the major purposes of the fire pre- yention campaign.
 "Obseryance of few simple rIies by the user of electrical ap- plsances vii Ihaye the effect of au- tomatically cutting down the an nual toll of fires and casualties These rules, which center around appliance cord, are the following:
 "cords should never be run oyer radiators or steam pipes. Dampnes' and contact with metal are dangers when this is done. Never run cords under rugs where they are sure to become worn too quickly. Do not place cords in door jams, where the danger of fire through cracking or squeezing is present. Do not dis connect appliances by pulling on their cord, this lOosens the connec- ti0ns and often leads to trouble. Never use cords as substitutes for permanent and properly installed wiring.
 Requirements
 "Neyer leave heating appliances connected when not in use, Examine cords regularly for bare spots which are constant source O& fire heEardg; replace worn cords at once as measure of protection fo yourself and those living or working with you. Insist on aD- proved cord bearing the inspection label of the National Board of Fire Underwriters. All reliable manu- facturers of cord affix the label to their products.
 "InspectOr O'Rourke, laid stress on the "handyman" about inc house, the amateur electrical ex- pert who never thinks of calling In anyone but himself when minor electrical troubles occur in the |. house. This species of home shDiens, said the speaker, Is il constant men ace to himself, his family and his neighbors. His little "doodads' such as bridging fuses fin the house system, have caused more fire en- zines to roll to residential fires than can be counted accurately.
 ~fhe bandyman around the h0use--and. this means three in every five husbands" said Inspec- tor O'Rourke, lis. insofar AS cleo tricity is concerned, fl constant menace to himself, his family and his neighbors This fact was made apparent by a study of aDDroxi- Dpately 1000 fires of electrical origin in 6 city where fl total fire loss of s7g0,OO0 included $730,000 loss from fires caused by either improp- CT maintenance or by unapproyed extensions and alterations 10 ex- isting equipment.
 Call Inspector
 "It is essential that whenever electrical work is done, either for new installations or for extension purposes thta m eIectric9J insDec- tor be called in and that the con- tractor furnish an electrical certin- cate to show that the work has been not only inspected but aD- proved for safety by the Electrical Inspection Bureau. fl is fl fact that where proper electrical inspection