Most Istanbul fires resulted from cigarette butts: Report

ISTANBUL

The Istanbul Fire Department released a report on the number of fires that occurred in the Turkish megapolis in 2021 and their causes.

The report shows 2,617 blazes broke out in the city in the first three months of the year, and most of the fires stemmed from haphazardly discarded lit cigarettes and faulty electricity.

According to the report, 39.4 percent of those fires in Istanbul were caused by cigarette butts.

The faulty and careless use of items, gas stove or candle overturning, children playing with fire and sparking were among the other causes of fire.

Another data showed that the majority of the fires broke out in the afternoon and nearly 35 percent of the fires occurred between 12 p.m. and 6 p.m.

The officials also shared statistics on responding to the incident.

According to the report, the average arrival time of Istanbul firefighters to the scene is five minutes and 26 seconds.

Meanwhile, experts listed the issues to be considered in order to prevent fires in residences.

Experts noted that electric sockets with current protection and child lock should be preferred, and more than one device should not be connected to the socket.

Barbecue activities should be avoided in places such as balconies and roofs due to the inability to go to the recreation areas during the pandemic process, they said.

But most importantly, experts warned to never smoke while in bed, sitting on the sofa and couches.