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Show Gluserve Fire I Prevention Week Oete&foea 3 o 3 f Fire Prevention week is of "top priority" to the American farmer. According to the national fire protection pro-tection association, sponsor of the Fire Prevention week: "Fires were never more expensive than they are today." Many farms are under-insured; under-insured; some building materials are at all-time peak prices; others are impossible to get. With the need for certain foods, "you just I can't afford to have a fire today." I Most farm buildings are of wood f built with little thought for fire safety. Hay, grain, straw, food, and other materials stored on the farms burn rapidly. In spite of this farms usually have no water or apparatus to put out the fire that starts; and in many isolated communities, com-munities, organized fire departments depart-ments are a long ways off. The majority of farm fires are due to just seven causes all are largely preventable. The approximate approxi-mate order of their importance is listed as follows: 1. Defective chimneys and heating. heat-ing. 2. Combustible roofs. 3. Lightning. 4. Spontaeous ignition. 5. Misuse of electricity. 6. Careless smoking and handling hand-ling of matches. 7. Improper use and storage of gasoline and kerosene. Fire prevention is a 365-day "chore" but 'farmers should place special emphasis on eliminating fire hazards during Fire Prevention week, Oct. 8 - 14, 1950. It doesn't make much sense to work for years and bring a farm to peak efficiency only to lose it in a few minutes, just because someone caused a fire by smoking thoughtlessly thought-lessly or was careless when "gassing "gas-sing up" the tractor. |