Safe Campfire Practices to Prevent Fires

8/7/2020 (Permalink)

Here at SERVPRO of Edmonds we hope everyone is enjoying a wonderful summer full of traditional outdoor activities such as hiking, camping and enjoying the beautiful Pacific Northwest. A campfire can be one of the most memorable parts of camping, and also provides necessary warmth to hunters and other outdoor enthusiasts in the cold. Don’t forget your responsibility to maintain and extinguish flames fully in order to prevent wildfires. Unfortunately Washington State has been the victim of many forest fires and we must do the best we can to preserve our land, homes and businesses.

Here are some Do’s and Don’ts when it comes to maintaining your campfire;

Never cut whole trees or branches, dead or alive. Live materials won’t burn and dead standing trees — called “snags” — are often homes for birds and other wildlife.

Once you have a strong fire going, add larger pieces of dry wood to keep it burning steadily and at a manageable size.

Don’t burn dangerous things like aerosol cans, pressurized containers, glass or aluminum cans. They could explode, shatter or create harmful fumes .

Never leave your campfire unattended and always supervise children and pets.

To extinguish your campfire allow the wood to burn completely to ash if possible.

Pour lots of water on the fire to drown all visible embers.

If you do not have water, stir dirt or sand into the embers with a shovel to bury the fire.

With your shovel, scrape any remaining sticks and logs to remove any embers. Make sure that no embers are exposed or still smoldering.

Continue adding water, dirt or sand and stir with a shovel until all material is cool; if it’s too hot to touch, it’s too hot to leave!

For more information on emergency preparedness and safety practices contact SERVPRO of Edmonds at 425-775-5723.