A Friday evening house fire near Bill’s Corners in Norfolk was possibly due to a phone charger and “associated wiring”, says a Norfolk County Fire official.
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Firefighters from Vittoria, Simcoe, Delhi and St. Williams were called to the blaze just after 5 pm at Charlotteville East Quarterline Road and Concession Road 8.
They arrived to find an advanced fire in the home, which left extensive damage, now estimated at $500,000.
No one was home at the time of the fire and the firefighters were able to prevent any further loss to nearby structures.
“The preliminary investigation was limited due to the safety of the remaining structure,” said Cory Armstrong-Smith, fire prevention officer.
“However, a cellphone charger and associated wiring is being considered as the source of ignition even though it was not charging a device at the time of the fire.”
As a reminder, Armstrong-Smith said electronic devices should only be used with charging equipment that comes with the device and cables and cubes should be discarded immediately if they become kinked, damaged, discolored or show any other signs of malfunctioning.
“For optimum safety, all electrical devices should be unplugged when not in use.”
For more information, contact Norfolk Fire’s fire prevention bureau at 519-426-5870 or 226-NORFOLK weekends between 8:30 am and 4:30 pm, or visit www.norfolkcountyfire.ca.
@EXPSGamble
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