Patna, April 11: The disaster management department on Monday cautioned people living in the rural areas and houses with thatched roofs to exercise caution and follow a list of dos and don'ts if they wanted to prevent such accidents.

The state has witnessed 11 deaths and damage to 3,722 households in fire incidents reported from 23 districts in the first 10 days of April.

"Fire incidents are common these months because of strong westerly winds and hit villages where people live in thatched houses. Also, the fire tends to happen in the fields causing heavy damage to crops. The disaster management department, in coordination with the fire services, is keeping a tab on these incidents and providing relief wherever necessary. However, the people need to be cautious and some simple steps will ensure that they remain safe," disaster management minister Chandrashekhar said on Monday.

Begusarai, around 120km east of Patna, has been worst affected with 838 homes gutted in fire this summer.

"Most of these incidents happen during cooking. It is an advice to all people to ensure that they finish cooking before the winds get stronger. Usually, it is seen that winds gain strength only by 10am and then continue until the late afternoon hours. About specific timings, one should ensure that people finish cooking before 8am and start cooking after 7pm. They should also ensure that before lighting fire in the earthen hearth, people should ensure that everything related to cooking should be near them. People should refrain from leaving the oven unattended. In addition to the same, they should keep one bucket of water ready in the house at any given time, especially during cooking. No dry leaves or wood or any easily inflammable thing should be kept near the oven during cooking. Also, once cooking is over, people must ensure that fire in the oven is properly put out," he added.

Today, a sudden fire completely destroyed at least 10 homes in a slum in the Patliputra area of Patna. The police said it appeared that the fire had started during cooking. Fire incidents were also reported in districts such as Begusarai, Araria, Saran, West Champaran among others.

Principal secretary (disaster management) Vyasji said during these months (April to June), one should not light a fire in an open space.

P.N. Rai, director-general (homeguard and fire services), said foam-based fire tenders had been provided to 204 police stations. "Rest of the 274 police stations will get these soon," Rai said.