Brampton highlights its house fire hotspots
After the deadliest year on record for house fires, Brampton officials have targeted some of the cities biggest “hot spots”. Last year alone five people died in the city as the result of a house fire, more than ever before. By using fire records to zone in on neighbourhoods where an influx of fires occurred, it is hoped that more lives can be saved when danger strikes.
Topping the charts was Ambro Heights in Ridge Hill, the south end of the city, which was home to 32% of all fires in Brampton. Fire services raced to put out 250 fires from 2012 to 2017, with 30% of them starting in the kitchen. Furthermore, 40% of those kitchen fires were started by unattended cooking, with discarded smoking materials coming in second place. Similarly, in the city centre 35% of fires started in kitchens, a large portion of which were in high rise buildings dotted throughout the area. Although there are only 88 such buildings throughout the GTA city, those fires accounted for 16% of all residential fires in Brampton.
It wasn’t long ago that a vicious blazed spread through eight Brampton townhomes, destroying the entire row of houses and forcing 14 tenants into temporary homelessness, reminding residents how quickly a fire can spread.
The key recommendation in avoiding a fire in your home is to not leave any cooking or flammable objects, such as candles or smoking paraphernalia, unattended. Other tips include not overloading electrical sockets and trying to stay aware of any faulty lights or electrical goods. However, it is also vital that you have an adequate home insurance policy in place to help recover any damages and items that you may lose in an unfortunate situation.
In an additional push to protect its residents, on Tuesday officers from Brampton’s fire services went door-to-door in the city’s danger zones to hand out fire alarms.
Irma Orzeck was one of those residents, who told CBC about her own experience having to make an emergency call after her basement freezer started smoking. "There would have been a big fire had I not been home," said Orzeck, highlighting the importance of having a good fire alarm installed.