Lincoln County 911 Communications Center dispatched the Merrill Fire Department just after 4 p.m. Monday for a report of a chimney fire at 2109 Logan St.
Initial response from Merrill Fire included, Engine 2, Medic 2, Medic 3, Ladder 1 and Car 60. Tomahawk EMS provided Mutual Aid ambulance coverage. Upon arrival, command was assumed by Engine 2 and all occupants had evacuated the building. Engine 2 personnel entered the residence with SCBA’s and a hose line. They removed paneling and ceiling covering to expose the fire inside the walls and ceiling. Company members extinguished the fire with the hose line. Further fire extension was checked with a thermal imaging camera and none was found.
Interviews were conducted with the property owner and the tenant. The tenant had stated the wood stove had a good fire going in it for the last four months. The owner reported last having his chimney cleaned in the fall. The owner and tenant were advised not to use his wood stove until his stove and chimney were cleaned and inspected. There was no working smoke detector in the house. Property owner will be contacting his insurance agent.
This structure fire is the eighth wood burning heating device fire in the Merrill Fire Department response area since November 2013. Wood burning stoves and fireplaces can be effective tools for heating, but they also pose fire hazards that contribute to home heating equipment being the second leading cause of U.S. home fires.
The Merrill Fire Department, the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) are teaming up to reduce the risk of home heating winter, when half of all U.S. home heating fires occur. Creosote – a sticky, oily, combustible substance created when wood does not burn completely – rises into the chimney as a liquid and deposits on the chimney walls, and plays a role in one-quarter of all home heating fires each year.