Photo: Kurt Joudrey

Naramata fire crews responding to a chimney fire Tuesday morning

As temperatures drop, the Naramata Fire Department is reminding residents to get their chimneys cleaned to avoid a visit from firefighters.

Crews were called to a home on Ritchie Avenue around 8:30 a.m. Tuesday for a blaze caused by an unmaintained chimney.

“The amount of creosote that was built up in this one, it was actually pouring up and over the little metal cap, thick as molasses,” fire chief Tony Trovao said.

He said residents that rely on wood stoves for their primary source of heat through fall and winter should consider getting their chimney cleaned by a certified professional twice a year.

Trovao said the fire Tuesday was straight-forward for them to extinguish and prevented significant damage to the home.