South Dakota’s Fire Marshal says the number of structure fires last year was about the same as previous years. Fire Marshal Paul Merriman says preliminary numbers indicate there were 380 fires in buildings-mostly single family homes-in 2013. He says that is about average when comparing the figure with those of the past few years. He also cites nine fire related fatalities, which is lower than the 2012 figure.Merriman says so far this year; there has been one fire related fatality. Cooking is one of the main causes of fires and Merriman says the financial toll left behind by blazes is high.
Merriman says fire departments are required by state statute to report their calls to the Fire Marshal’s Office each month