According to figures requested by the Shropshire Star, Firefighters in Shropshire spent just under 215 hours tackling over 130 chimney fires between January 1st, 2012 and January 1st, 2013. Fire safety manager, Rabinder Dhami, said that although a lot of time and effort has gone in to making the public aware of the dangers of chimney fires, some people are still ignoring the warnings. He said, "In January we were called to 28 chimney fires in 28 days. It can cost between £40 and £70 to have your chimney swept...you cannot put a price on your safety." Mr Dhami claims that 9 out of 10 chimney fires can be prevented, purely by maintaining a chimney and having it swept reguarly. Whilst many people are changing to wood burners and open fires to lower the cost of their energy bills, the flue systems must be maintained to ensure they are safe to use. Ideally, a flue system should be swept at least once a year by chimney sweep who is registered member an association or guild.