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Firefighters are calling on the public to be extra vigilant this winter after a spate of house fires across the region, one caused by a bathroom staple that gets an extra workout in the colder months.
Fire and Rescue NSW duty commander for the Riverina, Ross Genders, said a series of fires over a 48-hour period last weekend should be a stark reminder to people that winter can be a dangerous time of year for fires.
"Within that 48-hour period we ended up having three house fires, of which one house was completely destroyed, across the region," he said.
One fire in particular should give Riverina residents pause for thought as it involved a bathroom heat lamp and fan unit that caught fire at a house in Temora on Friday night.
Temora FRNSW captain Greg Matthews said firefighters were called to the incident at 8.30pm on Friday at a residence on Loftus Street.
Captain Matthews' team responded to reports of smoke coming from the roof of a residence and investigations found that a Tastic had "exploded", according to the owner who had self-evacuated and escaped injury.
The fire was extinguished promptly and the bathroom sustained "medium" damage from smoke and fire.
Captain Matthews said that the occupants were lucky the incident occurred early in the evening and stressed that the public should be aware that incidents like this can occur when electrical devices are not cleaned properly.
"They build up. Because they're blowing with no filter they can attract a lot of lint and dust," he said.
"People tend to forget that, we always talk about dryers, but if people went and had a look at their Tastics and took the globes out, they'd see a lot of build up."
Duty commander Genders said at this time of year people need to check all of their heaters that may have lay untouched all summer.
"If the fan hasn't been used for a while, if you turn on the heat to stand underneath and you're not running the fan ... it starts to heat up all that lint and that lint gets to a certain point and combusts," he said.
It's also imperative that people not overload powerboards, electric blankets and make sure fireplaces and flues are cleaned. And another way people can keep safe during the winter months, he said, is to volunteer to become a retained firefighter.
"A lot of these communities are very isolated, so having people from their own town looking after it, is beneficial for the town," he said.
"If you're interested in becoming a retained fire firefighter enquire at your local Fire and Rescue NSW fire station."
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Conor comes to Wagga from Sydney, where he worked for education and health publications. Originally from London, Conor is interested in your quirky story. Mobile: 0400 311 335 EMAIL: conor.burke@dailyadvertiser.com.au
Conor comes to Wagga from Sydney, where he worked for education and health publications. Originally from London, Conor is interested in your quirky story. Mobile: 0400 311 335 EMAIL: conor.burke@dailyadvertiser.com.au
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