State and local fire officials believe several area structure fires during the past two weeks' cold snap may have been related to people trying to heat their homes or thaw frozen pipes.
Jennifer Mieth, spokeswoman for the state fire marshal’s office, said on Monday that a fire Sunday at a farmhouse in Grafton, a fire Jan. 1 at a home in Nahant and a Jan. 2 fire at a mobile home in Bourne were all caused by efforts to thaw frozen pipes.
People sometimes use a propane torch, or in the case of the Grafton fire, a heat gun to try to thaw pipes. It is best to allow water to run to prevent pipes from freezing. But to thaw frozen pipes, it is safer to use an electric heating pad wrapped around the frozen section of the pipe or an electric hair dryer.
"Applying open flames is a direct path to trouble," Ms. Mieth said. "In many instances, what it will do is cause the water to boil and the pipe to burst. But it can also cause a fire."
A fatal fire at a home in Oxford last month is also thought to be weather-related. Interim Fire Chief Paul Ford said that fire, in which a woman died, is under investigation.
"I believe they feel it had something to do with the wood stove. That's the inclination. But the final report is not out yet," he said.
He said there have also been some smaller fires recently that were not fatal. One was sparked by a homeowner trying to thaw a frozen pipe. There have been other instances of frozen pipes that set off alarms in homes, and those take up the Fire Department's "time and resources," he said.
"This type of weather certainly presents greater risk," Chief Ford said. "Furnaces are running at a higher rate than normal to try to keep up with the cold. And people try to augment the weather with electric heaters, wood stoves, pellet stoves ... People should never use an extension cord for an electric heater because an extension cord is not made to carry that type of wattage."
Worcester Deputy Fire Chief John F. Sullivan said the cause of Sunday's house fire on Canterbury Street is still under investigation. "At the same time, you look at the weather and you have to figure there could be a connection to that somewhere down the line," he said.
The Canterbury Street fire is the only major fire Worcester has had during the cold snap. Chief Sullivan attributed that to the department's fire prevention division, which strives to keep residents and landlords in compliance with regulations; and the public education division, which informs people about safe and unsafe fire and heat-related practices. He credited the full-time fire department's quality code enforcement and public education efforts, in conjunction with working smoke detectors, which allow firefighters to respond quickly and detect some fires before they grow.
"We're very lucky as the second largest city in New England to have all those assets at hand. We generally have a low occurrence of these (devastating fires) happening. (But) "when the temperature goes down, the risk of folks using alternative means or over-stressing the resources they have increases the risk."
He said fires in communities that have call or volunteer fire departments have potential to grow bigger and increase the loss for the homeowner.
"Your house can be a mirror image of a house in Barre or Oakham or wherever ... same problems and experiences when it's on fire. The resources (Worcester) can bring to bear are going to determine in large part the loss of property and life."
Ms. Mieth at the fire marshal's office said she fears that people who lose their heat may turn to leaving their kitchen stove burners and ovens on. That, she said, can cause fires and carbon monoxide poisoning.
"It tends to be very common during these cold snaps ... we see more tragedies," she said. "This is the time of the year when working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms really save lives."
Information on how to heat safely is available at https://www.mass.gov/service-details/learn-about-winter-home-heating-safety