That is the advice from Chief Fire Officer Chesterfield Mayers to householders following the three deaths by fire so far for the year.

Mayers said in case of a fire in the home, people needed to know every exit in their homes and train themselves to be able to find them even in the middle of the night.

He told the DAILY NATION in a telephone interview yesterday that the situation where people were dying in house fires was becoming a trend and was becoming unbearable.

"People have to be more careful, especially when using candles," he said.

In fact, Mayers advised the public not to use candles at all and to find another way to light up their homes. However, he acknowledged some people had no choice and advised them to use extreme caution.

"Do not leave candles burning when you go to sleep," he said.

The fire chief also said that too often when fire officers arrived at the scene of a fire in Barbados, it was too late. He appealed to the public, especially people who live in The City, to call them early.

Another problem Mayers identified was people not being truthful when it came to revealing how fires had started.

Sunday morning, Doreen Dawe was burnt alive in her home in Licorish Village, My Lord's Hill, St Michael.

Earlier this month, Ronnie Streaks died when his two-storey house in Crumpton Street, The City, went up in flames.

In March, Anita Griffith perished when she was unable to get out of her rented building in Constitution Road, also in The City.

The three deaths brought the total of fire-related deaths up to 24 over the past eight years.

Mayers said fires could start anywhere, but acknowledged they seemed to be happening frequently in The City lately.

As for other fires, the department continues to be under extreme pressure. A call to the Fire Service revealed 14 grass fires had been reported yesterday, bringing that total for the year to 842.

The following is a breakdown of some of the other fires for the year: 162 cane fires; 150 rubbish fires; 43 private dwelling fires; 21 commercial building

fires; 102 false alarms (good intent) and 79 false alarms (malicious intent). (CA)

Source: The Nation Newspaper - April 29, 2008