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Show APPALLING WASTE Mounting Fire Loss Predicted CHICAGO. With fire losses continuing con-tinuing to mount, damage may exceed ex-ceed the billion dollar mark by 1950, Frank A. Christensen, president of National Board of Fire Underwriters, Underwri-ters, warns in urging support of the federal action program to save life and resources which was the result of President Truman's conference on fire prevention. The increasing fire waste was attributed by Christensen to two causes, one physical and one psychological. psy-chological. "The physical factor tends to increase in-crease the number of fires of all kinds, and the size of losses where flames gain headway because of delayed de-layed alarms, poor fire protection, negligence or bad housekeeping," he explained. "The psychological factor arises out of our careless and reckless habits," he explained. Christensen pointed out that since 1941, national waste by fire has more than doubled, rising to 616 million dollars for the 12 months ended April of this year from 300 million dollars for 1941. "Even more appalling," he said, "is the indication that the loss of life may have risen to & figure never experienced before. Loss of life in hotel fires in 1946 was greater than in any year in our history." Despite a 22 per cent increase in arson investigations, the national board had found a sharp decline in the number of fires started for profit during the last year. The board pointed out that in the year ended April 30, juveniles accounted ac-counted for almost half of the persons per-sons arrested because of incendiary fires, and persons mentally irresponsible irre-sponsible for another large share. |