Home Fires

• One home structure fire was reported every 87 seconds in 2009.
• On average, seven people died in home fires every day. Adults 65 and over face the highest risk of fire death.
• In 2009, U.S. fire departments responded to 362,500 home structure fires. These fires caused 12,650 civilian injuries, 2,565 civilian deaths, $7.6 billion in direct damage.

Smoke Alarms

• Roughly two-thirds of home fire deaths happen in homes with no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms. About one in five smoke alarm failures was due to dead batteries.
• Working smoke alarms cut the risk of dying in reported home fires in half.
• In fires considered large enough to activate the smoke alarm, hardwired alarms operated 91% of the time, while battery powered alarms operated only 75% of the time.

Home Fire Sprinklers

• Automatic fire sprinkler systems cut the risk of dying in a home fire by about 80%.
• Home fire sprinklers can contain and may even extinguish a fire in less time than it would take the fire department to arrive on the scene.
• Sprinklers are highly effective because they react so quickly in a fire. They reduce the risk of death or injury from a fire because they dramatically reduce the heat, flames and smoke produced, allowing people time to evacuate the home.

Heating

• Fires involving heating equipment peak in December, January and February, as do deaths from these fires. Overall, homes fires and home fire deaths are also more common in the cooler months of the year.
• Heating equipment was the second leading cause of all reported home fires and home fire deaths.
• The leading factor contributing to heating equipment fires was failure to clean, principally creosote from solid fueled heating equipment, primarily chimneys.
• Half of home heating fire deaths resulted from fires caused by heating equipment too close to things that can burn, such as upholstered furniture, clothing, mattresses or bedding.
• U.S. fire departments responded to an average of 64,100 heating-related home fires each year between 2005-2009, causing an average of 560 deaths, 1,620 injuries and $904 million in direct property damage.

Smoking Materials

• The risk of dying in a home structure fire caused by smoking materials rises with age.
• In recent years, Canada and the United States have required that all cigarettes sold must be “fire safe,” that is have reduced ignition strength and less likely to start fires.
• U.S. fire departments responded to an average of 18,900 smoking-relate home fires each year between 2005-2009, causing an average of 660 deaths, 1,270 injuries and $492 million in direct property damage.

Electrical

• 41% of home electrical fires involved electrical distribution or lighting equipment.
• 53% of home electrical fires involved other known types of equipment, including ranges, washers/dryers, fans and space heaters.
• During 2005-2009, electrical distribution and lighting equipment was involved in the ignition of 23,400 home structure fires, on average, per year. These fires caused an average of 390 deaths, 970 injuries and $822 million in direct property damage.