FDNY Teaching Kids Fire Safety Following Recent Blazes
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- In the last two weeks, New York City has seen three major fires that were all started by children playing with fire.
As a result, the FDNY is holding a fire safety event in Queens on Monday to educate children in an effort to prevent future tragedies.
"These are preventable fires and parents and guardians must ensure the children under their care are properly supervised, and that they don't have access to matches, lighters, open flames or other potentially dangerous sources of fire." said New York City Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro.
A four-alarm fire in the Bronx on Aug. 9 was started by children playing with fire and a dish towel on a stovetop.
On Aug. 13, children playing with matches started a fire in a Queens building.
Last Thursday, children playing with matches started a six-alarm fire on Staten Island, completely destroying three homes and damaging four others. Twenty firefighters and three civilians were hurt.
The recent fires left a total of 35 people injured, nearly 100 displaced and 14 homes damaged.
A recent study by the National Fire Protection Association found nearly 50,000 fires are caused by juveniles playing with fire each year nationwide – resulting in an average of 80 deaths, 860 injuries and more than $235 million in property damage.
For fire safety tips and more, visit www.FDNYSmart.org.
