Outdoor spring cleaning for fire safety

With the arrival of the spring season many people will be doing some cleaning around the house.  Often times people spend so much time scrubbing, dusting and doing yard work that they overlook some simple things that could make the home a little safer. Russellville City Fire Marshal Justin Green said there are a few things that residents can do to clean up and help prevent fires this spring.

Discarded matches, cigarettes and wayward sparks easily ignite outdoor debris and dead vegetation. To better protect your home, remove collected leaves from the roof and eaves, around the foundation and from the yard. This is especially important near forested areas.

Clean garages or carports of stored newspapers or other rubbish that can fuel a fire. Sweep out dried leaves and cobwebs.

Clean around furnaces and water heaters to remove leaves, cleaners, dust and other combustibles. Gasoline, kerosene and other flammables should be stored in their original containers, tightly capped, and stored outside the home in a shed or detached garage, according to officials.

Oily rags can ignite without a heat source because they produce their own heat. Throw them out or store them in a closed metal container. This includes dusting rags used with a furniture polish or spray.

Gently vacuum your smoke alarms to remove any dust or cobwebs to reduce the chance of false alarms and may increase the effectiveness of the sensor.

Follow this up with a good general cleaning of the rest of the house. Getting rid of unwanted items and old household chemicals remove fuel from a fire, giving the fire department a better chance of limiting the amount of damage.