New Bedford Guide Your Guide to New Bedford and South Coast, MA
Mulch is a combustible material that can be easily ignited by improperly discarded smoking materials. Hundreds of small and large fires are started this way every year. The risk is that what starts as a small outdoor mulch fire can quickly spread to buildings.
A mulch fire can be well underway before someone notices or is alerted by smoke alarms or sprinkler systems activating.
The most notable mulch fire in Massachusetts occurred in May 2015 in a large Arlington apartment complex. One man died in the fire started by smoking materials discarded in a mulch bed, which then spread to the building. Thirty-six apartments and six cars were destroyed. The building had no sprinklers and the estimated dollar loss was $6.7 million.
In April 2012, improperly discarded smoking materials ignited mulch outside an assisted living center in Braintree. The fire forced many older adults to evacuate in the early morning hours. Several suffered smoke inhalation injuries.
In May 2008, a cigarette ignited a mulch fire at a Peabody apartment complex. It caused $6.7 million in damage to the building, displaced 750 people temporarily and 36 permanently.
“Why would anyone carelessly toss a lit cigarette into mulch?
With our dry weather and fanned by a breeze, the smoldering fire could spread. Be respectful to our neighbors! Help to prevent fires! Thankfully the fire was quickly extinguished.
Go to the link for more info: https://camb.ma/3NeTbpY.” -Cambridge MA Fire Department.
