Heat Tape Fires
Heat tape, used to wrap water pipes to prevent freezing, caused two mobile home fires in a two-day period in Iowa.
The first fire, in Toledo, Iowa, on Feb. 3, began when heat tape set some straw around a mobile home on fire. The second occurred in Iowa City when an electrical wire in heat tape beneath the floor shorted, according to Larry Kinney, Iowa City fire marshal. A smoke detector is credited with saving the owner’s life.
