Preventable Fire Stories

The CPSC has announced the recall of 900,000 GE coffee makers that were sold at Walmart. The retailer has received 83 reports of overheating, smoking, melting, burning and fire, including three reports of minor burn injuries to consumer’s hands, feet and torso. Reports of property damage include a significant kitchen fire and damage to countertops, cabinets and a wall.

The recall includes model numbers 169164 and 169165 of General Electric®-branded 12-cup digital coffee makers sold exclusively at Walmart.

Consumers should immediately stop using the recalled coffee makers and return the product to any Walmart for a full refund.

Walmart Recalls General Electric® Coffee Makers Due to Fire Hazard [CPSC]

Hey Walmart.  You should sell my power strip to mount above the countertop and it can shut off the coffee makers and toasters that start putting out a lot of smoke.

A fire injured a man and damaged an apartment Monday in southern Winston-Salem, authorities said yesterday.

LINK

A man was treated by Forsyth County paramedics for smoke inhalation and was taken to Forsyth Medical Center, the Winston-Salem Fire Department said. The fire damaged a second-floor apartment at 3514 Konnoak Drive.

The fire was started shortly before 7:30 p.m. by a coffee maker, the fire department said. It took firefighters 17 minutes to put out the fire.

The fire caused $40,000 in damage to the apartment building, the fire department said. The American Red Cross assisted the two adults who lived in the apartment.

I wonder what brand of coffee maker.   My power strip hides neatly below the top cabinets, above kitchen work surfaces, and would shut off smoldering coffee makers.

Franklin County officials are investigating an afternoon fire.

Check out my video for how neatly my SmokeShutoff power strip mounts above the kitchen counter to shut off any malfunctioning kitchen appliance.

CHESAPEAKE

Fire destroyed a mobile home on Ruddy Court near Military Highway on Friday.

According to fire department spokesman Capt. Steve Johnson, the trailer was extensively damaged and firefighters retrieved four pets: a dog and three cats. Firefighters used pet rescue masks to resuscitate the animals, but one cat died.

The residents were not home at the time. No firefighters were injured.

The fire was caused by an electrical short in a coffee pot, Johnson said.

LINK

see my video for how neatly the SmokeShutoff power strip hides above kitchen counters to protect against this type fire.  Just mount it on the bottom of the upper cabinets.

Hot fire caused extensive heat, smoke damage to home in northwest Bend (Bend Fire and Rescue photo)

Fire traced to problem with coffee pot

more at LINK

coffee maker - 145,000 recalled

Recent recalls: About 145,000 Kenmore and Kenmore Elite Coffee Makers have been recalled because the wiring in the coffee maker can overheat, posing burn and fire hazards to consumers. The products were sold at Sears, Sears Hardware, the great indoors, and Kmart stores nationwide, as well as Sears.com and Kmart.com, from August 2007 through April 2008 for between $30 and $100.The recall involves 12-cup Kenmore coffee makers sold in black, white, and red with certain model numbers which you can find here.

What you can do: Consumers should immediately stop using the coffee makers and take them to a Sears or Kmart store to get a free replacement coffee maker. For a full list of product recalls visit http://www.recalls.gov/.

Milford house fire

A home in the 900 block of Annie Lang Drive in Milford was the scene of a fire Sunday afternoon. No people were at home at the time, but two dogs inside were recovered by Milford firefighters and taken to a veterinary clinic for treatment of smoke inhalation. One of the dogs, a boxer, was treated with oxygen by firefighters before it was transported to the clinic.

According to Milford Fire Chief Larry Waligora, the kitchen of the home was damaged extensively. While the cause of the fire is yet to be determined, a preliminary investigation indicates it may have started in the kitchen, possibly from a coffee pot left plugged in.

LINK

See video on my webpage for how neatly my power strip mounts under cabinets above kitchen counter.  Shuts off coffee pot at first sign of smoldering.

A faulty coffee maker is the suspected cause of an early Friday morning fire in St. Lawrence County.

A passerby spotted the 1 a.m. fire the trailer owned by Larry Osoway  along North Street, Madrid.

The trailer was currently under renovation and no one was home, fire officials report. The trailer was heavily damaged by the flames and smoke.

more at LINK 

My power strip mounts above the countertop, cutting off coffee pots before they catch fire.

Eastham Fire Chief Glenn Olson estimated that 60 and 70 percent of the home was damaged by the fire. He thought the house, which was assessed by the town at $527,700, might be a total loss.

The cause was thought to be accidental, and fire investigators are concentrating on an appliance in the kitchen that may have malfunctioned, Olson said. David Jalbert said that the couple had only turned on their coffee maker, which was a type that brewed coffee into a thermos, with no heating element under it.

Firefighters work on the ground and on ladders to contain a fire at an Eastham duplex yesterday morning.

more at LINK

see the video on my webpage for how to hide the Smoke Shutoff power strip over the countertop in a place that will prevent coffee pot fires.

05/22/2008 09:47 PM
Alexis Huicochea

A family of five was displaced Thursday when a fire broke out, destroying their Southwest Side mobile home.

The Drexel Heights Fire District was called to the 2800 block of West Milton Road, near Cardinal Avenue and Drexel Road, at 11 a.m. by a neighbor who saw smoke coming from the home, said Tracy Koslowski, a Drexel Heights spokeswoman.

No one was home at the time, she said.

It took 23 minutes and 15 firefighters to extinguish the blaze, Koslowski said.

The interior of the home was destroyed along with all of its contents, she said. The fire has been ruled accidental and was started at an electrical outlet. A coffee pot that was left on overheated the outlet.

Damage is estimated at $20,000.

more at LINK, including pictures

My power strip can shut off power to any appliance plugged into it, possibly cooling an overheating wall outlet that starts smoking.  See the video on my webpage for where to mount the power strip in an effective location above the kitchen work top.