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New Bern, N.C. – N.C. Insurance Commissioner and State Fire Marshal Wayne Goodwin will urge citizens to “protect your palace” in observance of National Fire Prevention Week at Tryon Palace on Monday, Oct. 10. Goodwin joins Bob Priesing of Havelock Chimney & Venting for the cleaning and inspection of chimneys at the Governor’s Palace and the Kitchen Office, where colonial cooking was at its finest.
National Fire Prevention Week, Oct. 9 – 15, promotes reducing the risk of home heating fires in December, January and February, when half of all U.S. home fires occur. Fire destroyed Tryon Palace, North Carolina’s first colonial state capitol, in 1798. Goodwin will share remarks at the 10 a.m. event, along with Danny Meadows, Director of Facilities Services at Tryon Palace.
Although fireplaces conjure up images of warmth and comfort, they are a significant source (36 percent) of home heating fires. Sticky, oily, combustible creosote, created when wood does not burn completely, rises as a liquid and deposits on chimney walls, factoring into nearly one-fourth (23 percent) of home heating fires annually.
The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) are teaming up to reduce the risk of these and other home heating fires. As part of their joint fire safety campaign, “Put a Freeze on Winter Fires,” both nonprofit organizations say that chimneys should be inspected and cleaned annually by a qualified professional.
Winter fires are preventable! For more heating fire safety advice from NFPA and USFA’s “Put a Freeze on Winter Fires” campaign, visit www.nfpa.org/winter.
Submitted by: Trish Ashburn, Marketing and Communications Manager, Tryon Palace, 252-639-3500