LIMA, OH (WLIO) - The leaves are starting to fall and with the recent dry weather, the Lima Fire Department is reminding residents to keep fire prevention in mind.
Smokers are urged to be extra careful as improperly discarding cigarettes into dry grass or leaves can start a fire that quickly spreads out of control. As tempting as it may be to burn those fallen leaves in your yard, open burning is against the fire code in Ohio, and that rule is enforced in the city limits. As you rake leaves this fall, remember to rake those leaves away from the house the avoid adding fuel to a fire.
"One of the other things that we don't talk about that often is the accumulation of leaves. Because now leaves are starting to fall, and just make sure they get raked but not up against the house, like rake them away from the house because it only takes a spark to get that pile of leaves to be a fire and then where is it? If it's away from the house, no problem but if it's next to the house, now the house is on fire and something that could of been prevented," stated Warren Pughsley, Lima Fire Department inspector.
With fall being a prime time to fire up the grill, Pughsley says any outdoor grills should be placed at least twenty feet away from the house, and to never grill under a covered porch.
