P Patch homeowner 'got away lucky' says fire prevention officer

Oily rags were to blame for yesterday’s garage fire in the P Patch area, says an investigator with Sault Ste. Marie Fire Services.

Dan Fraser, fire prevention officer with the Sault fire services, said the owner was doing some woodworking in the detached garage of his Promenade Dr. home and improperly disposed of the oily rag in a garbage can.

“He was using a product called Dutch Oil, which is a wood preservative you use on wood projects. It has a caution on the can that the product is susceptible to spontaneous heating and combustion,” said Fraser.

The rags should have been disposed of in water, as per directions on the can, said Fraser.

“When you are using products — whether it be cleaners, paint sealers, different products like that — take the time to read the cautions on the product labels and follow them,” he said.

The oily rags were in the garbage can for over 24 hours, along with sawdust, wood parts and other refuse one would expect to find in a workshop.

The oily rags spontaneously ignited, said Fraser, and caused the garage to fill with smoke.

The owner opened the door to find smoke filling the garage from floor to ceiling and called the fire department.

Firefighters arrived shortly thereafter and extinguished the fire, which had not spread far past the garbage can.

“There was damage to the workbench — and tools and equipment were sooted up pretty good — but there wasn’t a lot of fire spread. It was pretty well confined,” said Fraser.

A gas heater and the garage’s electrical wiring were checked for damage and cleared, said Fraser.

“He has a little bit of clean up to do in there — a few plastic parts were melted — but he got away pretty lucky,” said Fraser.

An oxygen acetylene torch was located in a separate area in the garage and was not exposed to the fire.

The ignition of compressed fuel gas could have complicated response from the fire services, said Fraser, which made speedy extinguishing of the fire all the more important.

Ventilation in the sealed garage may have prevented the oily rags from combusting in the first place, said Fraser, but could also have introduced oxygen to fuel the fire.

“I think if the doors had been cracked a bit or window open it would have been a different story,” said Fraser.