After the arrival of the coldest air of the season, firefighters report seeing an uptick in calls.
"Once the cold weather hit, we've had quite a rash of calls," said San Antonio firefighter Armando Perez.
Perez and his colleagues spent several hours Wednesday morning putting out a fire at home on Buckeye Ave. near Interstate 10.
"This is our third fire today," he said.
Cold weather was an indirect contributor in the case of this fire. Perez said it was believed the source was a hot water heater located in a closet.
"The hot water heater is working a little bit harder because of the cold snap and so the combustibles around the bottom of the hot water heater wound up igniting," said Perez.
The fire resulted in $10,000 of damage and Perez said served as a reminder not to store anything around the base of a hot water heater.
In general, firefighters advise to be careful with all heating appliances.
"Don't use your stove or your oven as a heating source," added Perez.
A stove was likely the culprit of another San Antonio fire overnight on Blanco Road. A vacant structure on Houston that burned early Wednesday morning is also being investigated. Firefighters believed that it may have been started by vagrants trying to stay warm.
Firefighters warned to watch closely for carbon monoxide in the home, make sure and regularly service your heaters, and to watch space heaters closely.
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