Winter in Dubbo means blankets, heaters and putting a log or two on the fire but this winter Fire and Rescue NSW said it have seen a concerning increase in fire fatalities in the home. More than 10 people have died and of the 400 homes damaged by fire this winter, almost 50% did not have a working smoke alarm.
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Glen Whitehead, Duty Commander for Dubbo Western Slopes said smoke alarms now typically have long-life lithium batteries but many still do not and they go flat or people take the batteries out for different reasons and it's important people make it a habit to check their alarms regularly.
"We've got to be better at housekeeping, smoke detectors should be one of those things you check once a month when you're vacuuming your carpets, mopping your floors. Think 'oh, I better just vacuum that smoke detector in case it's got any cobwebs or insects around it' and give it a quick test," Glen said.
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Using older heaters that draw a lot of power and overloading power boards are two ways Glen said people often find themselves in trouble. However he also said rises in the cost of living have presented their own share of issues.
"To reduce fires in the house, don't don't leave cooking unattended, turn off your electric blankets and heaters just before you go to bed and - especially furniture, and people drying clothes in these winter months away from heaters and fireplaces," Glen said.
"A lot of people these days now, because the cost of living has got so high with electricity and gas, we're finding people - and this happens every year. But people bring barbecues and cooking equipment inside their house," Glen said.
"People with heat beads, all this stuff produces carbon monoxide. These people think that they are getting warm, but they're actually literally falling asleep to their death, because this stuff will just slowly take the oxygen out of the air and do put you to sleep."
He wanted people to know that your local firies will gladly check and replace your alarms if you aren't able to or can't afford it.
"You can get on the website... or you contact your local fire station and those guys in the truck - when they've got spare time in between call outs and other community activities that they're doing can come and see you and talk to you test the smoke detector, replace it, change the battery, and that's all free of charge," Glen said.
"You just need to call up and we've got we've got stacks, and then we've got boxes of them."
Glen said the next best thing you can do is to talk with your family, friends and coworkers. It could save their life.
"Start talking to your family, your friends, your work colleagues, your neighbors, and ask them, 'Do you have a smoke detector? Does it work?' Let's have the conversation... I think the community needs to get the message out there. Let's get this conversation happening," he said.
"These are preventable deaths. They're just preventable deaths."
