Extreme cold has settled into the region and Windsor Fire and Rescue Services (WFRS) is reminding residents to be safe when it comes to heating their homes.
Space heaters are often used during the winter months, but come with the risk of starting a fire.
The city's chief fire prevention officer, Mike Coste, says when using a space heater, it's important to have a clear surrounding of at least a metre from combustibles.
"People that have pets, you want to make sure that the pets don't knock these space heaters over, or drag clothes on them, we also want to make sure that say we're hanging clothes on a rack, but the rack doesn't fall over and possibly hit the space heater causing a fire."
He says the department recommends that people don't use a space heater at all, but says people need to still ensure their home has a working smoke detector.
"A lot of people like to use, unfortunately, like to use their oven, so they turn their oven on and open their oven and use that for heat, we recommend that you never do that."
Coste says those using fireplaces need to make sure the flues are clean.
"Make sure that there's no combustibles in the chimney because the creosote gets up there, also make sure the reason its clean is [to] make sure there's no animals up that are up there, and when you're using your fireplace, make sure your dampers are open, because a lot of people don't open them, therefore the smoke comes back in the house."
More fire safety tips can be found on the WFRS website: https://www.windsorfire.com/public-education/home-fire-safety/.