Ekurhuleni Emergency Services has launched a winter awareness campaign to reduce residential fires and carbon monoxide poisoning. The initiative focuses on the safe use of heaters, paraffin stoves, and electrical appliances during cold weather and power outages. Key safety recommendations include installing carbon monoxide detectors, maintaining a one meter distance between heaters and combustible materials, and unplugging appliances during load shedding to prevent fires when power returns.
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The mention of paraffin stoves and makeshift heaters shows how far we are from efficient building envelopes. When homes have no insulation, people take these risks just to stay warm. It is a maintenance and poverty issue as much as a safety one.
The load shedding point is critical. Sudden power restoration can trigger faulty appliances or those that were left on. Do we know if there is any local push for safer, low power heating alternatives that can handle these swings?
The focus here is on individual behavior, but the root cause is energy insecurity. Until there is a policy shift toward subsidizing basic home insulation or safe electrification in these areas, these awareness campaigns only treat the symptoms.
