Firefighters want you to make fire safety a priority, especially in the winter.

Fire safety is something Guy Sutton, a local technician, keeps in mind. 

“I have a wife and three daughters and pets and you know, property loss,” said Guy Sutton, a protection and controls technician.

Johnstown resident Glen Barefoot tests smoke detectors, keeps fire extinguishers handy and turns off kitchen appliances.

“I’ve been guilty of that: leaving the deep fryer on, forgetting about it and you have to go back in. So, I’ve tried to make the habit of once I’m done with it, shutting everything off,” Barefoot said.

Richland Fire Captain Chris Guizio said there is more you can do to keep you and your family safe, particularly during the winter:

• Make sure smoke and carbon monoxide detectors are working properly and placed in multiple rooms in your house.
• Have fire extinguishers on each floor.
• Keep space heaters away from clothes, blankets and furniture. 
• Do not plug space heaters into extension cords
• Turn off space heaters before leaving the house.
• Make sure that furnace ashes are cold before properly disposing of them, outside and far away from your house. Be sure to place the ashes in a proper container, not a plastic or flammable bin.

Extension cords, both indoors and outdoors, also pose a risk.

“We’ve gone into homes where we have an odor of something burning, and it’s an extension cord. Not that it’s necessarily overloaded, but it’s running underneath the carpet with the foot of the couch on top of it,” said Deputy Richland Fire Chief Bob Heffelfinger.

Closing doors in your home before going to sleep can help prevent the spread of a fire.

“That’s going to help keep the fire from getting into those rooms,” Guizio said.

Knowing how to prevent a fire, practicing fire prevention and having an escape plan could mean the difference between life and death.