Oregon Public Broadcasting

Firefighters have had their hands full with this week’s cold snap. As April Baer reports, a number of homes have caught fire when people improvised ways to warm up.

One chicken owner in Northeast Portland did $200,000 in fire damage by leaving a heat lamp next to a chicken coop lined with flammable straw.

Fire officials say most residential problems are caused by electric or propane heaters placed too close to siding.

Lieutenant Alan Oswalt with the Portland Fire Bureau says small extension cords can cause flare-ups when paired with some heaters.

Alan Oswalt  “When you plug a portable heater to that, the heater just draws so much amperage that it overcomes the load limit on those small cords.”

Oswalt says it’s best to plug heaters right into a wall.

This week, plumbers and contractors are also in high demand, fixing pipes that burst in the cold.

The National Weather Service says the cold weather should break by Sunday, when highs will reach back into the 40s.