Winter is a time to be extra vigilant at home as more fires happen during the cold months than any other time of year. What your home is made of and what’s inside of it, could make things a lot more dangerous for you.
Fire officials say the way some of the newer houses are designed, or even remodeled, can impact how fast they burn.
“Houses burn faster, materials burn faster and houses collapse faster,” said Inver Grove Heights Fire Chief Judy Smith Thill. “That is a danger to not only residents, but also to our firefighters.” Fire Chief Smith Thill has seen a lot over her three decades in this career, including how fast house fires are burning. “We did have one incident where our firefighters went in and they make a search and it was on a tile floor and they made their search and by the time they came back the floor collapsed beneath him,” she said.
Angie Wiese, the fire safety manager at the City of St. Paul, says people have a lot less time to get out of a burning home.