Urbandale Chief Warns of Fireplace Dangers

Urbandale Fire Chief Jerry Holt is warning Urbandale residents about the risks of fires from fireplaces and woodburning stoves in the wake of a two-alarm chimney fire that caused an estimated $75,000 damage to an Urbandale home on Tuesday.

Sabahudin Smajic was driving home shortly after 5 p.m. Tuesday when he saw flames coming from his home at 4005 80th St. He alerted the family to the fire and four people got out of the house safely, said Holt. Flames were shooting 20 to 30 feet into the air when firefighters arrived said a neighbor.

The Smajic family told firefighters they had lit a fire in the fireplace about an hour earlier and were completely unaware of the fire until Sabuhdin told them of it. Holt said the family used the fireplace often and had just had the chimney cleaned last spring.

Holt said the fire caused about $75,000 in damages and displaced the family. Investigators believe in the void space of the fireplace chase was caused by combustible materials being ignited by the heat from the fireplace flu.

Holt said that fireplaces, wood stoves and other fuel-fired appliances start 36 percent of all rural residential fires every year. Often the fires are due to creosote buildup in chimneys and stove pipes according to the U.S. Fire Administration.

Here are some tips to minimize your risk in using a fireplace or wood stove:

• Have your chimney or wood stove inspected and cleaned annually by a certified chimney specialist.
• Leave glass doors open while burning a fire, so it receives enough air to ensure complete combustion, which keeps creosote from building up in the chimney.
• Always use a metal mesh screen with fireplaces that do not have a glass fireplace door.
• Use only seasoned hardwood. Soft, moist wood accelerates creosote buildup.
• Never burn cardboard boxes, trash or christmas wrapping paper in your fireplace or wood stove.

The fire admininistation has additional safety tips on its website.