57°
- Burn only seasoned wood
- Have a protective barrier to keep curious children from touching flames or hot glass
- Never leave a fire unattended and call 911 and get everyone out of the house if trouble arises.
- Have your chimney inspected by a qualified chimney sweep annually; recently a Westport family’s home suffered damage due to a chimney fire.
- Once the fire is out, let the ashes remain in the fireplace as coals can stay hot for 4 to 5 days.
- Never put ashes in a paper, cardboard or plastic container, many fires have occurred as a result of this.
- Never ever use a vacuum cleaner to clean your fireplace.
- When cleaning the fireplace, ashes must be placed in a metal container with a tight fitting lid and stored outside away from the house, garage, or deck.
- Remember to have operable Smoke and Carbon Monoxide (CO) detectors.
- The Westport Fire Department is urging all to be vigilant when using fireplaces and woodstoves and properly dispose of the ashes.
Contact the Westport Fire Marshal’s Office at 203-341-5020 for more information.
Westport firefighters extinguished a blaze that started in the chimney of a home and spread to the roof on Sunday.
The fire in the home on Jackie Lane at 4:19 p.m. Sunday was reported by a neighbor who was out walking with their children.
The fire was located and confined to the chimney area at the roof line and above, and firefighters quickly extinguished it.
The cause is under investigation by the fire marshal's office.
Residents are reminded to have their chimneys cleaned and inspected annually by a licensed chimney company.
Click here to follow Daily Voice Westport and receive free news updates.
