In recent months, there have been a number of house and apartment fires in the Pullman area, affecting many residents, including students. For the most part, these fires were completely preventable and would not have happened were it not for residents behaving unsafely.

“With the last few fires [in Pullman],” Deputy Fire Marshall Tony Nuttman said, “the common issue has been carelessness.”

Common sense can help prevent a lot of these accidents. One recurring cause of fires in Pullman, Nuttman said, is people improperly disposing of cigarette butts and other flammable materials. Many people, after finishing cigarettes, simply throw them on the ground or leave them somewhere in a building, and they pose a major fire danger.

Why would someone throw something hot and smoking on the ground in this dry weather? With cottonwood fluff, dry brush and grass abundant in our community, it doesn’t seem like the safest course of action, yet this is a leading cause of fires on the Palouse. In just one week in early June, two apartment fires in Pullman were caused by people carelessly handling or disposing of cigarettes.

Another fire danger during the summer months is fireworks. Fireworks might seem like fun, colorful spectacles, but they are also, as their name would imply, flammable.

During the Fourth of July weekend, Pullman residents are often reckless in setting off fireworks. Nuttman said that in past years, fires have been started when fireworks hit the ground or buildings and catch fire.

Those who treat their fireworks like toys or weapons are bound to find themselves in dangerous situations, especially when they mix playing with fire with the dry climate of the Palouse.

To prevent other people’s mistakes from endangering their homes, students and other residents should try to create an area around their homes free of flammable materials like dry brush or cottonwood fluff. This allows homeowners to safeguard against the chance that someone else’s careless actions will affect their property.

Of course, not everyone has the chance to take this precaution. People who live in apartments, residence halls or duplexes depend on their neighbors to not act recklessly and destroy their homes.

If you see a situation that might lead to a fire, you can always report it. An important thing we can do to protect against the risk of fires is being proactive and taking action when other people are behaving dangerously.

If putting themselves and others at risk isn’t enough to make people change their dangerous habits, perhaps a surprise meeting with the cops or fire department is necessary. It’s certainly better for everyone if someone learns their lesson before rather than after.

If you are being reckless around fire, you are just waiting for an accident to happen. For those of us who are living on the Palouse over the summer, we don’t want to worry about our homes going up in flames. Please use common sense this summer and keep our community safe.