The Associated Press

LANSING, Mich. — Many people aren't using smoke detectors in homes as the number of residential fire-related deaths in Michigan rose last year, according to reports from a pair of insurance groups.

In 2006, there were 132 residential fire deaths in Michigan, up 15 percent from 115 in 2005, the Michigan Association of Insurance Agents said. Only 18 of the homes involved had smoke detectors. The 2006 figures are the most recent statewide numbers available.

Including commercial, vehicle and other kinds of fires, there were 139 fire deaths in Michigan last year, up 5 percent from 132 in 2005. The winter months are often the deadliest.

During the winter season, the association says house fires kill about 500 in the U.S., injure about 2,000 and cause more than $500 million in property damage.

"People should practice fire prevention every day of the year," Gary Mitchell, spokesman for the Michigan Association of Insurance Agents, said in a statement. "The need to practice fire prevention is especially important during the winter months." Christmas decorative lighting, the use of lighted candles, overloading of extension cords and electrical outlets, and dried and brittle Christmas trees are major contributors to fires in December.

Statistics indicate that occupants of a house with a smoke alarm are more than twice as likely to survive a fire as those without one, according to estimates from the Insurance Institute of Michigan.

"Smoke alarms provide an early warning which can allow residents to escape before the house is fully engulfed in flames," Pete Kuhnmuench, executive director of the Insurance Institute of Michigan, said in a statement.