Carelessness while smoking is the main cause of fires.
The indisputable leader of all fire incidents is carelessness while smoking. Most often, the culprits and victims of fire in such cases are citizens who abuse alcohol. As is known, people in a state of intoxication completely or partially lose control over their actions and behavior. Often, a person who has been drinking throws smoldering cigarettes anywhere, lies down in bed with a lit cigarette, and does not think about the consequences at all. In most cases, this category of citizens, along with their safety, endangers the lives of their loved ones, as well as those living nearby. Almost daily, similar incidents are reported in the Ministry of Emergency Situations summaries.
Double fatality in the Tolochin district. On October 25 at 00:38, a report was received from a citizen about a fire in a house on Central Street in the village of Rechki, Tolochin district. When the Ministry of Emergency Situations units arrived, open flames were observed on the roof of the wooden house. At the time of the fire, the owner and a male guest were inside the house. During the firefighting, the Ministry of Emergency Situations workers found the body of the owner, born in 1961, under the collapsed structures in the living room, and later another charred body of a man, whose identity is being established. As a result of the fire, the roof, ceiling, walls, and property were destroyed in the house. The considered version of the cause of the fire: careless handling of fire while smoking.
On the same day, only in the Dokshitsy district, carelessness while smoking led to the death of a pensioner. At 14:16, the Dokshitsy Emergency Situations Department received a report from a citizen about a fire in a residential house on Central Street in the village of Osovo. Upon arrival at the scene, open flames were observed in the residential house, and the roof of the shed was burning. The owner, born in 1951, a pensioner, was in the house at the time of the fire. The Ministry of Emergency Situations workers found the charred body of the owner on the floor in the room as part of the firefighting team. As a result of the fire, the roof, ceiling, walls, and property were destroyed in the house. The roof of the shed was damaged. The considered version of the cause of the fire is careless handling of fire while smoking by the owner.
On the morning of November 19, a report was received about a fire in an apartment on Youth Street in the village of Zapolie, Vitebsk district. Upon arrival at the scene, the Ministry of Emergency Situations units observed smoke coming from the window of the second-floor apartment of a multi-apartment residential building. During the firefighting, the Ministry of Emergency Situations workers found the body of the owner, born in 1969, on the floor in the corridor of the apartment. The fire was extinguished: in the apartment, the sofa in the room was damaged, and the walls and ceiling were blackened. The cause of the fire is being established. The considered version is careless handling of fire.
In the evening of November 25, a report was received about a fire in a house in the village of Belki, Senno district. The Ministry of Emergency Situations units responded immediately. Upon arrival at the scene, open flames were observed in the house, and the roof and ceiling collapsed. During the firefighting, the body of the owner, born in 1958, a pensioner, was found on the bed under the collapsed structures in the room. The fire was extinguished by firefighters: the roof, ceiling, walls, and property were destroyed in the house. The considered version of the cause of the fire is careless handling of fire while smoking by the owner of the house.
In the evening of November 29, rescuers received a report of a house fire in the agrotown of Borzodovka, Orsha district. Upon arrival at the scene, the Ministry of Emergency Situations units observed open flames in the house and partial roof collapse. During the firefighting, the Ministry of Emergency Situations workers found two bodies under the collapsed structures, one of which is presumably the owner of the dwelling, born in 1966, and the identity of the second deceased is being established. As a result of the fire, the roof and ceiling were destroyed, and the walls and property were damaged. An investigation is underway regarding this incident, and the cause of the fire is being established. The version being considered is careless handling of fire while smoking by the owner of the house.
The highest number of fires due to careless handling of fire while smoking occurs in the evening and nighttime. Events develop rapidly and always follow the same scenario, when a person falls asleep with a smoldering cigarette in hand, and after a while, neighbors call the rescuers. Unfortunately, at night, fires are discovered at a stage of burning when there is almost no chance of saving a person.
On the night of November 9, a report was received about a fire in a house on Central Street in the village of Kharkovka, Orsha district. The Ministry of Emergency Situations units immediately responded to the specified address. The first to arrive were the workers of the fire and rescue unit No. 1 of the Orsha city district emergency department. Approaching the scene, open flames were observed in the house. There was no way to enter it. After extinguishing the fire, the rescuers attempted to enter the house, but the door was locked from the inside. Firefighters entered the premises through the window and found a man unconscious on the floor in the room. They carried him out into the fresh air. After examination by the ambulance team, he was hospitalized with a preliminary diagnosis of poisoning from combustion products and burns to the back and lower limbs (20% of the body). The Ministry of Emergency Situations extinguished the fire, and the roof, ceilings, walls, and property were destroyed in the house. The version being considered is careless handling of fire while smoking by a young man.
Do not scatter unextinguished cigarettes – this is not even a requirement of fire safety, but ordinary rules of behavior for a normal civilized person. Unfortunately, many citizens do not attach great importance to them. People smoke in bed, throw cigarettes on the floor, and throw them out of open windows, creating fire hazards with their own hands.
On the morning of July 2, a report was received on the "101" hotline of the Novopolotsky city emergency department from a citizen about smoke on the balcony on Youth Street in Novopolotsk. Upon arrival, the Ministry of Emergency Situations units observed smoke on the balcony located on the sixth floor of a nine-story apartment building. During the fire, the owner, born in 1974, was in the apartment and extinguished the fire himself. Evacuation of residents was not carried out, as there was no smoke in the entrance. After some time, the man sought medical attention and was hospitalized at the Novopolotsk Central Hospital with a diagnosis of "poisoning from combustion products." As a result of the fire, the ceiling, walls, and window frame in the house were blackened, and the carpet on the balcony was damaged. The cause of the incident is being established. The version being considered is careless handling of fire while smoking by an unidentified person.
What to advise people who have a smoker in the family?
- install smoke detectors in all rooms;
- convince them to smoke in a designated area and dispose of cigarettes in an ashtray;
- ensure that they do not smoke in bed;
- warn that a cigarette thrown from the balcony can cause a fire;
- do not allow smoking in stairwells and around children.
Rules for smokers:
- do not smoke in the apartment (house), especially in bed, particularly when intoxicated;
- do not use paper bags, matchboxes, or cigarette boxes as ashtrays
- they can ignite;
- when the ashtray is full, empty it promptly;
- do not throw even extinguished cigarettes in trash bins, garbage chutes, or from balconies and loggias;
- ensure that ash does not fall on flammable items or the floor;
- keep matches, lighters, and cigarettes out of reach of children.
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