Top 14 Causes of House Fires

8/4/2020 (Permalink)

With so many uncertainties surrounding home fires, the best defense is a good offense.

House fires are often looked at as one of those “it would never happen to me” tragedies. The truth is that home fires happening constantly throughout the country. In fact, research from the National Fire Protection Association points out that a home fire occurs every 86 seconds in the United States. Recognizing that the potential for a fire to start in your home is the first step in taking preventative and proactive measures to protect yourself, your family, and your home.

The nature of a home fire lends itself to unpredictability. With so many uncertainties surrounding home fires, the best defense is a good offense. That means learning and understanding the most common causes of home fires in order to take measures to prevent them from occurring in your own home. The following are the top causes of house fires today:

1. Candles
2. Electrical equipment
3. Cooking
4. Barbeques
5. Inadequate wiring
6. Smoking
7. Lighting equipment
8. Dryers and washing machines
9. Flammable liquids
10. Heating equipment
11. Christmas decorations
12. Lightning
13. Curious children
14. Arson (intentional fires)

As you can see from the above list, nearly every single cause of home fires is an avoidable action. For instance, being on top of equipment maintenance in your home, keeping dangerous items away from children, and exercising extra caution while cooking can prevent a fire from starting in the first place.

Of course, there are always accidents and unavoidable circumstances that may lead to a house fire. If your home as suffered fire damage, we are here to help. At SERVPRO of Van Nuys North, our fire damage restoration experts are ready to help you any time, any day!