Fires in homeless encampments are on the rise again as winter is approaching. When cold weather sits in, people experiencing homelessness experiment with many ways to keep warm in their tents. Some can be risky, and some can be flat-out dangerous.
Sometimes Buddy Heaters are used. The device has a lot of preventative measures in place to keep from causing a fire, but accidents can still happen. And if a fire does happen, it’s the propane tanks that become a problem.
Using alcohol stoves to heat tents is another problem. It’s a very cheap and easy way for the homeless to heat a tent, and equally dangerous. Fire Departments will often miss the usage of these stoves being the cause of fires because there is usually no evidence of them left over after the fire is put out. Not only are the huge open flames dangerous, but the toxic fumes of burning methanol and producing soot inside the tent will cause irreversible damage to the lungs over time. Even if you’re using much purer alcohol like Bio-Ethanol, which still adds 3% toxic additives by law, it still produces a large, open, hot flame.
Then there’s the obvious. Drug and alcohol use. Add that to the safest scenario and it’s always going to be a problem. If you want to keep warm in a tent start with nature first. Get a Y-Frame Tent and put as many wool blankets over it as it can hold. Use a quality 0-degree bag, dress warm, and you should be toasty.
