More than 5.5 thousand fires have occurred in Belarus since the beginning of the year

December 7, Minsk. Since the beginning of the year, more than 5.5 thousand fires have occurred in the country, in which more than 500 people died. Evgeny Baranovsky, Assistant Minister for Emergency Situations, Press Secretary of the Ministry of Emergency Situations, Evgeny Baranovsky .

The employee of the Ministry of Emergency Situations noted that three main causes of fires can be distinguished: careless handling of fire, improper use of electric furnaces and heat-generating devices, and violation of the rules for operating electrical networks. "Smoking while intoxicated is the dominant component of the causes of fire and death during fires, including. Approximately the same number of fires falls on the second and third causes," added Yevgeny Baranovsky.

He also stressed that due to the heating season and the active use of stove equipment by the population, the number of fires has increased due to faulty stoves and their misuse. According to the specialist, since the beginning of the year, about 1,000 fires have occurred for these reasons, in which 34 people died.

The employee of the Ministry of Emergency Situations listed a number of recommendations to prevent the occurrence of fires due to malfunction of furnace equipment or its misuse. “First of all, we draw the attention of citizens that the stove itself must be in good working order, any cracks must be eliminated. The stove should also be whitewashed so that new cracks can be easily identified. The chimney must be cleaned at least once every two months, both at the beginning and and at the end of the heating season," Yevgeny Baranovsky noted.

He also stressed that the oven must not be littered. When firing the furnace, it must be taken into account that overheating of the furnace is not allowed. It is necessary to drown it several times a day with pauses of 2-3 hours. In addition, as the employee of the Ministry of Emergency Situations noted, it is necessary to provide for an inflow sheet - an ordinary tin plate measuring 50 cm by 70 cm, which will prevent fire in the event of coal falling out of the furnace. "A common cause of carbon monoxide poisoning is when people close the so-called yushka before going to bed and at the same time are not convinced that the combustion processes have stopped. This is fraught with the fact that all the smoke will enter the house and you risk getting carbon monoxide poisoning. Combustion processes, smoldering must be completely stopped, after which it is possible to close the yushka for the night," summarized Yevgeny Baranovsky.