People keep setting homes on fire while trying to melt snow

A Massachusetts man set fire to his home while using a torch to melt ice on his roof, a risky snow-removal technique that has led to several accidents during winter conditions.

The man in Milton, Massachusetts, a suburb of Boston, told WCVB-TV he was on a ladder using a torch to melt an ice dam on the front corner of the house when it caught fire and spread quickly on Jan 30.

The incident came on the heels of a powerful and deadly winter storm that dumped heavy snow and thick ice across a large swatch of the country. Some parts of the Boston area received more than 20 inches of snow from Jan. 25 to 27 and additional snow has fallen since, according to the National Weather Service office there.

The fire at the Milton home quickly spread through the whole attic, Deputy Fire Chief John Earner told WCVB-TV. It took hours to put the fire out, and nobody was injured, the outlet reported.

It’s not the first time something like this has happened. In recent years, there have been several reports of people accidentally starting fires while clearing away ice and snow, prompting fire officials to warn residents: Don’t use an open flame to melt ice on your home.

People set homes on fire while melting snow

Certain methods to melt ice or snow − such as using blow torches or heating up rubbing alcohol on the stove − have led to accidental and costly fires in recent years, according to local authorities and news reports.

In December 2025, a homeowner in Peoria, Illinois, set his porch on fire while using a propane kit to melt ice on his porch, WEEK-TV reported. Firefighters quickly extinguished the fire and everyone made it out of the home safely, the outlet reported.

In another case of a torch mishap, a Cincinnati man set fire to his porch while thawing ice on his outside steps. Smoke spread through the home, but the fire was contained to the exterior, according to a January 2025 report from the Cincinnati Enquirer, part of the USA TODAY Network. Nobody was hurt, but the fire caused nearly $100,000 in damages.

And in Racine, Wisconsin, in 2021, a woman told fire officials she was heating rubbing alcohol on the stove to melt ice on her car, but it caught on fire. She tried to take the pan outside, but tripped and spilled on an area rug. One person was injured, WTMJ-TV reported.

In 2019, the Kennewick Police Department in Washington state issued a “friendly reminder to homeowners not to attempt to melt ice during this winter season with any type of open flame.” The warning came after a resident tried melting ice on the front porch of their house using a propane weed-burning torch and set fire to the front of the home.

How to safely remove snow from your roof

Homeowners may want to expedite snow and ice removal from their roofs to prevent collapse. According to the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the risk of a roof collapsing due to snow is influenced by the building’s characteristics, including its materials and geometry. Another key factor is snow density, which affects how much weight the snow places on a roof and can vary from storm to storm.

In many cases, the risk of roof collapse or leaks inside can be mitigated by removing the snow, according to the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency. While snow removal isn’t always required, FEMA recommends consulting a local building inspector or qualified designer. If snow removal is deemed necessary, a professional should handle it using proper precautions, FEMA said.

According to the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency, homeowners who choose to remove snow themselves can do so with a snow rake or plastic shovel while wearing protective headgear and goggles.

They should start from the edge and work their way up the roof, shoveling snow over the side of the building, the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency said in a snow removal guide. All gutters and drains should be cleaned of ice, snow, and other debris.

“Try to shave the snow down to 2 or 3 inches on the roof instead of scraping the roof clean, which will risk damage to your shingles or other roof covering,” the agency said.

Homeowners should not stand on or place heavy equipment on their roof unless approved by a registered engineer, according to the agency. They also should be careful when using ladders, as ice can build up on the rungs.

This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: House fire blamed on botched attempt to melt ice with torch