Aussie in New South Wales told to check smoke alarms amid spike in house fires

SYDNEY - The fire agency in the Australian state of New South Wales (NSW) on Friday voiced its concern about the rising rate of house fires in the winter, urging local households to check their smoke alarms, reported Xinhua.

Data collected by the Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) showed that there were 1,063 residential fires during winter this year, seeing an increase of 119 incidents compared to the same season last year.

The fire authority noted that NSW has recorded the largest number of winter residential fires since 2019 when 1,092 of such blazes were reported.

According to FRNSW, eight people were killed in preventable winter residential fires this year, down from 17 deaths in 2022; while 115 others were injured by fires in their homes, up by 32.2 per cent from last year.

Human activities, undetermined causes, arson, electrical faults and overheating were flagged as leading triggers for the winter fires.

FRNSW Acting Assistant Commissioner David Felton underlined that the figures reinforce the need for working smoke alarms in homes.

"In almost half the fires we go to each winter, there's no working smoke alarm present," he warned.

"That's not going to protect you or your loved ones if a fire breaks out," the officer added. - BERNAMA