MAN DIES IN PINE VALLEY MOBILEHOME FIRE

Cal Fire and East County Magazine offer heating safety reminders for cold weather

January 13, 2013 (Pine Valley) – Firefighters battling a blaze at a mobilehome park in the 27500 block of Old Highway 80 in Pine Valley last night discovered a man’s body inside after extinguishing the blaze. Sheriff’s Bomb/Arson detectives have ruled out foul play.

Cal Fire spokesman Mike Mohler told ECM that investigators are looking at several potential causes, including the possibility that the victim may have perished due to an old or improperly used heating device in last night’s sub-freezing temperatures.

Here are important safety tips to stay warm  and safe during cold weather:

• If you use a floor heater, be sure it’s a newer model that will shut off automatically if it tips over. 
• Never run a floor heater if you’re not home and always turn it off before you go to bed.
• Keep flammable items such as papers and draperies away from the floor heater.  Check the minimum distances on all sides for your unit.  Be sure flammable items are not close enough to fall onto the heater.
• Check for frayed cords and do not use if the cord is frayed.
• Don’t overload circuits or sockets; a portable heater should not be plugged into a socket with other items.
• Never use a device intended for outdoors (such as a barbecue or propane stove) indoors due to danger of carbon monoxide poisoning.
• Install a carbon monoxide detector on every level of your home, especially near bedrooms.
• For fireplaces, use a screen to keep children and pets away and prevent embers from blowing into the room.
• Have your chimney cleaned  and inspected regularly.  A clogged flu could release smoke inside your home; a cracked flu could allow sparks  to escape into an attic, causing a fire.
• When lighting a fireplace, use long fireplace matches.  If you use a gas log lighter, be sure to turn it off to prevent carbon monoxide from escaping.
• Remove dead leaves, pine needles and tree limbs form your roof, especially near chimneys.
• Use a spark arrester atop your chimney to keep burning embers from escaping.
• Have SDG&E do a free inspection of your furnace each fall before turning it on.