Cooking:
- Cooking fires are the #1 cause of home fires and home fire injuries
- 40% of home fires start in the kitchen
- Unattended cooking accounts for 1/3 of such fires.
- More than half of all cooking fire injuries occurred when people tried to fight the fire themselves
- Electric ranges/stoves have a higher risk of fires, deaths, injuries and property damage compared to gas/ranges/stoves.
Electrical:
- Lamps, light fixtures and light bulbs account for the largest share of non-confined fires among major types of electrical distribution equipment, while cords and plugs accounted for the largest share of electrical civilian fire deaths
- Extension cord fires outnumbered fires beginning with attached or unattached power cords by more than two-to-one
Smoking Materials:
- Smoking materials (i.e. cigarettes, cigars, pipes, etc.) are the leading cause of fire deaths in the United States. In years 2002-2005, roughly one of every four fire deaths was attributed to smoking materials.
- Older adults are at the highest risk of death or injury from smoking material fires even though they are less likely to smoke than younger adults.
- Most common material first ignited in home smoking-material fire deaths were mattresses, bedding, and upholstered furniture.
Candles:
- Candle fires accounted for an estimated 4% of all reported home fires in 2005.
- The top five days for home candle fires are Christmas, Christmas Eve, New Year's Day, New Year's Eve and Halloween
