INDIANAPOLIS — The state’s fire chief is urging residents to avoid using alternative heat sources, citing a rash of fatal house fires and continued freezing weather across the state.
In a news release this week, Indiana State Fire Marshal Jim Greeson asked Hoosiers to avoid using space heaters and exercise caution when using other alternative heat sources as Indiana grapples with record low temperatures.
Alternative heating sources are one of the leading causes of home fires, which occur more often during the winter than any other season, he said.
“Fires caused by alternative heating equipment account for 19 percent of home fire deaths in the United States,” he wrote.
Ovens should never be used for heating as that can lead to carbon monoxide poisoning, the release states.
