Ukraine’s Emergency Service urges caution as fires killed 900 people last winter

The State Emergency Service of Ukraine is urging residents to follow basic fire safety rules as the country heads into the cold season.

Speaking at a briefing at the Media Center Ukraine, Viktor Vitovetskyi, director of the Department for Organization of Civil Protection Measures at the State Emergency Service of Ukraine, said nearly 12,000 fires were recorded across Ukraine last winter. The blazes claimed 900 lives, including 30 children, and left 676 people injured, among them almost 60 children.

“Last heating season, there were about 12,000 fires. They killed 900 people, including 30 children. Six hundred seventy-six people were injured, including nearly 60 children. Among the most likely causes of fires are furnaces, wood-burning stoves, overloaded electrical networks during power outages and careless handling of open flames,” Vitovetskyi said.

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