Four years after her house burned down, award-winning actress Chin-Chin Gutierrez once again deals with the pain of losing her home after faulty electrical wiring triggered the fire that burned her house completely and destroyed all her personal belongings. Her manager said that no interviews will be granted at the moment as the actress is still out of town for an ecological workshop, but Gutierrez sent a message stating that her primary focus right now is on “taking care of the immediate concerns and obligations that this unfortunate incident has brought.”

From January to June this year, the Bureau of Fire Prevention (BFP) has already recorded 1,463 cases—more than 300 percent higher than the 483 incidents that occurred in the same period last year. A large portion of these fires were said to have been caused by the El Niño phenomenon earlier this year, while the others were due to common causes like electric short circuits, candles, lighted matches, and cigarette butts.

March marks the Fire Prevention Month in the country, wherein the BFP and several local government units work together to administer fire prevention activities that could better educate and guide the public with regard to keeping their homes safe. However, with the increasing number of fire incidents, a year-long observance of prevention may be considered necessary. Just because El Niño is over and La Niña has taken its place doesn't mean that fires will be less likely to occur. One cannot be too safe—after all, fires choose no particular time and place.

Check out the tips below to learn how to better fireproof your home and reduce the risk of losing lives and material possessions.