{"id":425058,"date":"2025-12-04T22:28:17","date_gmt":"2025-12-04T22:28:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/425058\/"},"modified":"2025-12-04T22:28:17","modified_gmt":"2025-12-04T22:28:17","slug":"san-antonio-fire-department-shares-space-heater-safety-tips-as-temperatures-drop","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/425058\/","title":{"rendered":"San Antonio Fire Department shares space heater safety tips as temperatures drop"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\"><strong>SAN ANTONIO<\/strong> \u2013 As temperatures drop, many people are turning to space heaters to stay warm. The San Antonio Fire Department urges residents to follow a few safety tips to prevent fires.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">\u201cSpace heaters routinely are some of our biggest hazards,\u201d SAFD spokesperson Joe Arrington said.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">In the last five years, Arrington said space heaters have started numerous fires in San Antonio, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.ksat.com\/news\/local\/2025\/01\/16\/space-heaters-involved-in-2-deadly-fires-this-week-safd-talks-prevention-and-safety-tips\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" title=\"https:\/\/www.ksat.com\/news\/local\/2025\/01\/16\/space-heaters-involved-in-2-deadly-fires-this-week-safd-talks-prevention-and-safety-tips\/\">killing at least two people<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">To lower any risks, SAFD recommends people follow these steps:<\/p>\n<ul class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 kDvXdO font_openSans articleList\">\n<li class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__StackBase-sc-1fnzlkn-7 ecGWWE iQviKm\">\n<p>Plug space heaters directly into the wall. Don\u2019t use a surge protector or power strip. Space heaters draw a lot of power, and overloaded strips can overheat and catch fire.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__StackBase-sc-1fnzlkn-7 ecGWWE iQviKm\">\n<p>Check the cord before turning it on and inspect the cord from end to end. Ensure there are no frays, no tears and no separation from the heater itself.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__StackBase-sc-1fnzlkn-7 ecGWWE iQviKm\">\n<p>Use a hard, flat surface. Place the heater on the floor, not on top of furniture, rugs, blankets or anything uneven.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__StackBase-sc-1fnzlkn-7 ecGWWE iQviKm\">\n<p>Clear the space around it and keep the area 3 to 6 feet around the heater free of anything that can burn.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__StackBase-sc-1fnzlkn-7 ecGWWE iQviKm\">\n<p>Unplug it when you leave the room. Don\u2019t just switch it off \u2014 actually unplug it.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<li class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__StackBase-sc-1fnzlkn-7 ecGWWE iQviKm\">\n<p>Never leave space heaters on while sleeping. The deadliest space heater fires happen overnight when people are asleep and can\u2019t react in time.<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>What to look for when buying a space heater<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">For anyone shopping for a new space heater, SAFD said it\u2019s important to check the label first.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">Look for certification marks like UL (Underwriters Laboratories) or Intertek on the box or on the heater itself.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">\u201cThat\u2019s just what you want to look for,\u201d Arrington said. \u201cThat just means that this manufacturer has gone through the steps to ensure that this one is safe.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">SAFD said people can also flip the heater over and check for built-in safety features, like a tip-over switch.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">\u201cThis, when it sits down, this is the safety feature,\u201d Arrington explained, pointing to a trigger on the bottom of a heater. \u201cSo if it gets knocked over, it\u2019s going to shut it off.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\">SAFD said following these basic steps can help families stay warm while staying safe this winter.<\/p>\n<p class=\"dist__Box-sc-1fnzlkn-0 dist__TextBase-sc-1fnzlkn-3 bYFsJw cuqaEv article-text\"><b>Read also:<\/b><\/p>\n<p>Copyright 2025 by KSAT &#8211; All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"SAN ANTONIO \u2013 As temperatures drop, many people are turning to space heaters to stay warm. The San&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":425059,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5133],"tags":[5229,5025,14357,8152,7202,7203,198042,358,3187,67,586,132,5230,68,2969],"class_list":{"0":"post-425058","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-san-antonio","8":"tag-america","9":"tag-fire","10":"tag-safd","11":"tag-safety","12":"tag-san-antonio","13":"tag-sanantonio","14":"tag-space-heaters","15":"tag-texas","16":"tag-tx","17":"tag-united-states","18":"tag-united-states-of-america","19":"tag-unitedstates","20":"tag-unitedstatesofamerica","21":"tag-us","22":"tag-usa"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115663660956075146","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/425058","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=425058"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/425058\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/425059"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=425058"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=425058"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=425058"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}