Lincs: Firefighters called to more than 200 electrical fires across the county

Therefore Lincs Fire and Rescue Service is encouraging householders to turn off their tumble dryers, dishwashers and washing machines before they go to bed at night.

New figures show that over the past year the brigade attended 240 electrical fires in the county.

Faulty products or faulty wiring caused 87 fires, through things such as faulty motors, faulty circuit boards, damaged wires, trailing cables, and overloaded sockets, 13 fires were caused by tumble dryers and overheating machines due to too many items of clothing in the drum and filters full of fluff, were two of the main reasons the dryers went up in flames.

Dishwashers and washing machines caused 15 fires, as these appliances combine heat, electrics and moisture, there is often a danger that a fault can occur.

Sometimes, these products are faulty, and as such are subject to a recall.

Electric heaters caused a number of blazes, often caused by clothes being placed too close to the heat, and not resting the heaters on a stable surface.

Phone chargers, electric lighting and electric blankets were amongst the other causes of house fires.

Steve Screaton, deputy community safety manager, said: “Every year we have a number of fires caused by dishwashers, washing machines and tumble driers.

“Many people put their appliances on overnight which is not advisable.

“Statistically, we know that families are almost three times more likely to die in fires which start in the night, if they don’t have working smoke alarms, they breathe in the poisonous smoke and never wake up.

“To avoid this and to keep your family safe, we would strongly suggest using your electrical items in the daytime when you are in your property.”

Last year, electrical fires equated to 240 out of 355 accidental house fires in Lincolnshire and 136 fires were caused by misuse of cooking appliances such as cookers, hobs, microwaves, toasters and deep fat fryers.