"Pete C." wrote in message

Not as dramatic, not as likely to damage neighbors homes and most
importantly a lot less likely to kill the occupants. Boom, you're dead,
vs. fire, you run.

The fact that you hear of a house blowing up from gas shows
how rare it is if it makes more than the local news.

Not really, it's just more likely to kill the occupants and as we all
know, the media loves dead people.

How many people were
killed in traffic accidents this week? They are so common they don't
even
make the local news. IIRC, there are still 40-50,0000 traffic deaths a
year, but no big outcry to fix anything.

Indeed there are plenty of traffic accidents, and generally they get
local press as well (media loves death remember). The key difference is
that there aren't viable alternatives to traffic, your drive, take a
bus, train, and all have plenty of accidents. On the home front, there
are safer alternatives to gas in the home, so you are able to make a
choice to reduce risk. You can also make a choice to reduce risk by
having gas detectors too, but for some reason people tend to overlook
this and only think about smoke and now CO detectors.

Cooking and smoking are the two leading causes of fires. Here is number 3

http://www.mass.gov/?pageID=eopsterm...8&c sid=Eeops
Electrical Fires were the 3rd Leading cause of Fire Deaths in Massachusetts
in 2006. 579 Electrical Fires Caused 4 Civilian Deaths in Massachusetts in
2006.
Local fire departments reported that there were 579 structure fires caused
by electrical problems in Massachusetts in 2006. These fires also caused 75
civilian injuries, 92 service injuries and an estimated dollar loss of $26.2
million dollars. The average loss per fire was $45,248.

http://fireandfloodrepair.com/articl...ouse-fires-are...


With over 18 years as a Fire Marshall in Georgetown, Texas, Dan Jansen is an
expert in the world of fire safety. During his tenure as a Fire Marshall,
Jansen has dealt primarily with fire education, safety and prevention.
Jansen said that fires are caused primarily by consumers and homeowners
being careless when it comes to dealing with potential hazardous situations.
Jansen also said that the most common causes of home fires today usually
have to deal with extension cords, heaters and curious children.

http://www.essortment.com/articles/f...on-home_76.htm
"One of the most common fire causing elements is the use of an extension
cord in place of permanent wiring
," he said. "Most people are not aware of this danger. People will take
extension cords, and they will plug multiple devices into them for long
periods of time. Extension cords are designed for temporary use. I have seen
something as minor as a small transformer, that works the air compressor for
an aquarium, be enough to short out an extension cord."