CORPUS CHRISTI, TX — Lately it's been cold in the early mornings and later at night the temperature drops.
According to FEMA as more people stay cozy and warm inside their homes, there's an increased risk of fire with half of all home heating fires happening in December, January, and February.
As KRIS 6 previously reported at the end of November, a tragic house fire on 11th Street claimed the life of a 71-year-old woman.
"Investigators are shoveling trying to peel back and look under things to try and find out what caused it,” Corpus Christi Fire Department Assistant Chief Billy Belyeu said.
After further investigation, the Corpus Christi Fire Department (CCFD) determined the blaze was caused by an electrical cord inside the home.
"We pay a lot of attention to those types of things to make sure if there's any type of trends, we get that information out to the public,” CCFD Fire Marshal Tony Perez said.
Perez said the house fire on 11th Street was not an isolated incident.
"In the month of November, we had two civilian fatalities at two different fires,” Perez said.
In November, CCFD responded to 34 fires. So far, in December there's been 11 fires.
"Any fires that are electrical in nature, often times when it's accidental it could be issues with extension cords with wires exposed,” Perez said.
As it gets colder Perez wants people to be aware of potential fire triggers.
"Paying attention to those electrical cords and paying attention to overloaded outlets,” Perez said.
Efforts like these can help with putting a stop to the spike in fire-related calls.
"We do have a program where we're able to help out and install smoke detectors. The best way to research that is by calling our information number at 311,” Perez said.
For tips on how to put a freeze on winter fire, click here.
