《TAIPEI TIMES》 Fire safety urged for holiday weekend

By Jake Chung / Staff writer, with CNA

People should be careful when taking part in rituals that involve fire during the four-day Tomb Sweeping Day weekend beginning today, the National Fire Agency said on Thursday.

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Tomb Sweeping Day, which falls on Tuesday, is dedicated to remembering ancestors and paying them respect.

Common rituals for the holiday include sweeping their graves and burning joss paper atop tombstones.

The agency said it recorded 1,916 fires at gravesites from March 22 to April 5 last year, the majority of which were caused by people burning joss paper or weeds.

There is room for improvement regarding the public’s fire prevention knowledge, it said.

People should ensure that lit joss paper does not fly off, the agency said, urging members of the public to refrain from burning weeds, throwing cigarette butts to the ground or setting off firecrackers in situations when it is unsafe to do so.

The agency urged people to use environmentally friendly firecrackers or refrain from using any and instead play a recording of them.

In preparation of an unwanted fire, people should have a bucket of water ready and, if necessary, call the 119 hotline, it said.

In case they cannot put out the fire immediately, they should leave the site and wait for firefighters to arrive, it said.

People should stamp out the ashes after burning joss paper and clean up trash they have brought to the site, it added.

As a safer alternative, many local authorities offer services to burn joss paper and weeds on behalf of the public, the agency said.

Some cemeteries are planning to hold online services so that people could commemorate their ancestors remotely and reduce the risk of fire, the agency said.

新聞來源：TAIPEI TIMES