On 3 January, the duty officer of the Bolesławiec Municipal Police received a telephone report that one of the residents of Ceramiczna Street was burning rubbish in a stove. A patrol was sent to the scene.
The inspection did not confirm that any waste was being burned. Nevertheless, the officers were alarmed by dense smoke escaping through cracks in the chimney.
The fire service that was called found that soot had caught fire in the chimney. Officers from the District Headquarters of the State Fire Service ordered a chimney inspection.