Fire Recovery: Always Throw These Things Away After a Fire

1/11/2021 (Permalink)

fire damage

There are approximately 70,000 house fires each year in the United States. While these almost always result in significant property damage, there are also certain belongings that you should never try to salvage after a fire.

Not quite sure how to begin? We’ve got all the info you need.

Let's explore everything you should keep in mind when it comes to fire recovery.

1. Burned Clothing/Bedding

In the vast majority of scenarios, clothing and bedding will be completely destroyed by fire. But, you should also throw away items of those types that are burned.

The toxic chemicals from burning products often contaminate this material, which makes them unsafe to use in the future. For example, housefires involve the burning of many different types of objects, some of which are toxic when ignited.

So, you wouldn't want to lay down on a sheet or wear a shirt that has been saturated with toxic chemicals. If these items show any type of damage at all, it's best to throw them away.

2. Contaminated Food

Similarly, food can become contaminated just as easily. This is even true for non-perishable items, such as canned goods.

But, perishable foods also often become contaminated due to remaining at room temperature for too long. It's typical during a house fire for electrical systems to be affected, meaning that food isn't cooled properly in refrigerators and freezers.

As emergency responders put out the fire, your family deals with the aftermath, etc., it's typical for food to go bad in this scenario. So, throw it away to avoid any adverse health effects. 

3. Medication

This is something that many people are unaware of when throwing away possessions that have been affected by the fire. Most medication is highly sensitive to changes in temperature— there's even plenty of medication out there that has to be stored at specific temperatures.

So, exposure to high heat could easily affect the chemical nature of the product and make it unsafe to use. Depending on the type of medicine, dosage, etc., you may even experience adverse health effects by taking medicine that has been affected by a fire.

4. Cosmetic/Hygiene Products

Although not quite as much of a danger as medication, cosmetic and hygiene products are similarly affected by high-levels of heat. Even something as simple as shampoo or moisturizer could be harmful during routine use.

In many cases, this has to do with the chemicals from the plastic container contaminating the product itself as a result of excessive heat. A reliable way to tell if a product has been contaminated is whether or not the container is warped.

Proper Fire Recovery Can Seem Complicated to 

But the above information will make the process far smoother. From here, you’ll be able to ensure that you handle your fire recovery process exactly as you should.

Want to learn more about what we have to offer? Feel free to reach out to us today and see how we can help.