ROGERS (KFSM) - The Rogers Fire Department is urging people to heat their homes safely as an Arctic cold front moves in Monday (Nov. 10) into Wednesday causing a drop in temperatures for the next two weeks.
Ken Walden knows what can happen if you do not take the right safety precautions. He lost a good friend in a house fire.
"He heated underneath the basement of his house with rented propane heaters," Walden said. "It killed him and his fiance."
Now, Walden is getting ready for the cold weather.
"I heat mainly with wood, which powers the furnace which heats my home," he said.
Walden said he also uses propane to heat his home.
"If you maintain the system, it's as safe as any other system," he said.
Rogers Fire Chief Tom Jenkins said not all people choose to heat their homes in safe ways.
"We have seen barbeque grills in the garage," he said. "We have seen people using cooking stoves both electronic and natural gas to heat homes."
Jenkins said a clean chimney and using wood burning stoves or central air are some of the safest ways to heat your home.
While keeping a home warm through the winter can be expensive, Jenkins said some companies have energy programs for low-income families.
"The last thing you want to do is conduct an unsafe method to stay warm and it result in injury or death to your family or neighbors," Jenkins said.
The Rogers Fire Department works between ten and fifteen structural fires a month.