Local fire departments want you to be safe when it comes to heating your home with a space heater.

Door County residents got their first reminder of the danger a space heater could bring last month when the Sister Bay/Liberty Grove Fire Department responded to an electrical fire at a home on Europe Bay Road that occurred because of an overloaded circuit with a space heater plugged into it. While that was contained quickly, a malfunctioning space heater caused an apartment building in the Bronx borough of New York City to catch fire over the weekend. That blaze killed 17 people and more than two dozen others to local hospitals for treatment, making it the deadliest in the city in approximately 30 years. Ephraim Fire Chief Justin MacDonald says there are some common tips to remember when you are operating a space heater, including to always be at home when it is on.

The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission blames space heaters for more than 25,000 fires and 300 deaths each year.