BULLOCH COUNTY, Ga. () — Following an uptick in emergency incidents, a Bulloch County Fire official has provided essential safety guidelines to assist residents in safeguarding themselves and their homes.
In July alone, Bulloch County’s 911 dispatchers handled over 1,000 fire-related calls, highlighting the growing concern in the area.
Fire Prevention Chief Joe Carter emphasizes that the most critical safety equipment in your home is your alerts system.
“The top priority is having functioning smoke alarms,” Carter noted. “Smoke and carbon monoxide detectors serve as your primary defense. They alert you to a fire in your home, offering an early warning so you can evacuate safely.”
In addition, he advised, “I highly recommend keeping an ABC fire extinguisher at the ready in your home for minor incidents. Your first action should always be dialing 911, and if possible, use the extinguisher, but ensure you’re between the fire and the exit before attempting to do so.”
Carter also said to be aware of power sources.
“I encourage people to minimize the use of extension cords,” he said. “Extension cords are for temporary use, and a lot of times, we see situations where people have them permanently installed to be running in appliances, pulling way too many amps to be running off of a small extension cord.”
Nationwide, lithium-ion batteries have become an issue, he said.
“We remind people to make sure we’re getting UL-tested products and chargers and original equipment to replace those,” Carter said. “The usual issue with lithium-ion batteries is that the batteries become damaged or they may be overcharged or go through some type of heat cycle; that’s sometimes related to the charging system, so we want to make sure that’s original equipment or that we’ve got the adequate equipment.”
He continued, “Charge everything on a flat surface and away from combustibles.”
Carter said these tips and more can be beneficial to Georgia Southern University students moving or returning to campus this fall.
“Just be responsible,” he asks. “No unattended cooking. Make sure that you do have your smoke alarms in place. Obviously, you don’t want to be smoking indoors or anything of that variety. Kids sometimes have a habit of going to sleep with your cell phone under their pillow. Again, that’s a lithium-ion battery. That’s not the place that it needs to be.”
Carter also spoke to about commercial property fire safety and why residences are usually at a higher risk.
“Bulloch County has an inspections program,” he said. “We inspect our properties for life safety code and OCGA. As a result, obviously we’re in those properties, and we’re making sure they’re code compliant for people and business patrons to go in, and we don’t necessarily have that situation in residential structures. A lot more safety precautions in commercial property due to the way that the codes are written.”
He also said sometimes there isn’t much owners can do to prevent fires. Recently, two structure fires as well as the Buie Driggers Wildfire were caused by a lightning strike.
“Lightning is an act of nature,” Carter said. “Not really anything you can do to prevent that, but to protect your interests, make sure that your insurance policy is up to date. There is such a thing as protecting your interests by going through your home and videoing the contents so that you know what’s there if you have to file a proof of loss. It’s much easier to know what’s within your property and to be more prepared to deal with the paperwork that follows.”
Bulloch County remains under a burn ban. Any violator could face up to a $1,000 fine or 60 days in jail.