After 'preventable' West Des Moines house fires, here's a look at how to grill, smoke safely

A charcoal grill's ashes reignited in the early hours of Wednesday morning, burning down a West Des Moines home.

West Des Moines Fire Marshal Mike Whitsell said the fire was the third significant house fire in the city since Easter Sunday.

"All three of these fires appear to be accidental but very preventable," Whitsell said.

There were no injuries or fatalities as a result of the fires, he said.

West Des Moines fire officials responded to Wednesday morning's fire at 1:39 a.m., where they found the fire had permeated all levels of the home, according to their Twitter page. An investigation revealed the fire started in a charcoal grilled located outside of the home.

"From what our investigation concluded, the homeowner had used that grill in the evening for dinner time, had put the lid on top of the grill to extinguish it, but opened the vents," Whitsell said.

Whitsell said windy conditions likely led to air entering the grill through the opened vents, reigniting a fire out of the extinguished ashes.

"It (the ashes) gets one gulp of air and now you have a fire again," he said. "It's all it needs is another influx of oxygen. On a windy night that can happen.”

The National Weather Service placed all of central Iowa under a red flag warning Wednesday from 1 p.m. until 8 p.m. and again on Thursday from noon to 8 p.m. due to relatively low humidity near 25% and strong winds of up to 25 to 35 mph.

Whitsell said all three West Des Moines fires occurred outside of the homes and happened during windy conditions.

One of the fires, which occurred at 7:40 a.m. on Tuesday morning, was caused by "improperly discarded smoking materials," Whitsell said. The cause of the third fire, which occurred at 12:40 p.m. on Easter Sunday, is still under investigation, he said.

"Anytime that you get a windy day, anytime you get a fire on the outside of the house, they can burn undetected because the homeowners in the house don’t know about them until it’s a significant amount of time into the fire," Whitsell said.

Spring and summer grilling safety tips

As the weather warms up and more residents opt to use their outdoor grills, Whitsell said there are important safety measures they should keep in mind:

• Make sure to close the vents after using a charcoal grill to ensure extra air does not get inside and potentially reignite the fire. Whitsell said grill owners can also consider dousing the grill in water after use.

• If using a charcoal grill, consider storing it on a noncombustible surface, like a driveway. Avoid storing it on wooden decks or on areas close to the home.

• Make sure to check on the grill before going to bed to make sure ashes have not reignited.

• Don't dump ashes out in the trash right after extinguishing the grill. "Those are hot ashes," Whitsell said, "even though they appear to be extinguished."

• Clean the grill often to avoid fires caused by excess oil

• Never leave the grill unattended when in use

Tips for proper disposal of smoking materials

Whitsell said it's also important for smokers to properly dispose of smoking materials to avoid causing accidental fires.

"If you are a smoker, you need to make sure you are not discarding those cigarette butts on the ground," he said.

Smokers should invest in cigarette butt containers, Whitsell said, which are often made out of metal. He said homemade disposal containers, such as flower pots or plastic containers, are potential fire hazards.

Francesca Block is a breaking news reporter at the Des Moines Register. Reach her at FBlock@registermedia.com or on Twitter at @francescablock3.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Fire safety tips for smoking, grilling to avoid Iowa house fires