A mobile home fire that displaced a family Sunday night northeast of Elmore’s Corner originated in a dryer vent, said Karola Hanks, fire marshal with the Durango Fire Protection District.
The fire was reported about 5:30 p.m. Sunday near county roads 228 and 225, about 12 miles northeast of Durango, off U.S. Highway 160.
The double-wide was likely destroyed in the blaze.
The fire is a reminder for residents to clean their dryer vents annually, if not biannually, Hanks said. The vents can become clogged with lint, which prevents air from moving through the system as it should, which can cause the heating element to overheat and light the clogged lint on fire, she said.
“It’s something that we all have in our homes, and we just take it for granted,” Hanks said.
Dryer duct cleaning brushes can be purchased at hardware stores like Kroegers and Home Depot. In addition to sweeping vents, residents should look for lint buildup around the motor of the dryer and outside the tumbler of the unit, she said.
“This is not the first one that we’ve seen, nor will it be the last,” Hanks said of Sunday’s dryer fire.
shane@durangoherald.com
