Fire Prevention and Awareness
Fire Safety tips for your home:
There are many causes for fires in the home. The five (5) main causes of fire are cooking, heating, smoking, electrical problems, and candles.
When cooking, make fire safety a priority by keeping these tips in mind:
● Be alert; if you are sleepy or have consumed alcohol, don’t use the oven or stovetop.
● Stay in the kitchen while you are frying, grilling, boiling or broiling food.
● When simmering, baking or roasting, check the food regularly, remain in the kitchen while cooking and use a timer.
● Keep anything that can catch fire away from your stovetop.
Heating is the second leading cause of home fires. Follow these tips from the American Red Cross:
● Keep all flammables, like paper, clothing, bedding, drapes or rugs, at least 3 feet from a space heater, stove or fireplace.
● Never leave portable heaters and fireplaces unattended; turn off heaters and make sure fireplace embers are extinguished before leaving the room.
● If you must use a space heater, place it on a level, nonflammable surface, like ceramic tile, not on a rug or carpet.
● Keep children and pets away from space heaters.
● When buying a space heater, look for models that shut off automatically if the heater falls over.
Other top causes of fire include smoking, electrical problems and candles. To minimize risks:
● Institute a “no smoking” policy in the house.
● Check all cords and replace any that are frayed or have bare wires.
● Switch to flameless candles.
● Keep matches and lighters high and out of children’s reach in a locked cabinet.
Maintain your smoke detectors
About three out of five fire deaths happen in homes without working smoke alarms. Smoke alarms are a key part of a home fire escape plan providing early warning to reduce your risk of dying in a fire. The National Fire Protection Association recommends you:
● Install smoke alarms on every level of your home, inside bedrooms and outside sleeping areas on the ceiling or high on the wall.
● Keep smoke alarms away from the kitchen, at least 10 feet from the stove, to reduce false alarms.
● Use special alarms with strobe lights and bed shakers for people who are hard of hearing or deaf.
● Test smoke alarms monthly.
● Replace batteries in your smoke alarm and carbon monoxide detector at least annually.
● Replace smoke alarms that are 10 or more years old.
Have an escape plan:
A home fire is reported every 88 seconds. Once the smoke alarm sounds, a fire can spread quickly, leaving only a minute or two to escape. That's why it's so important to have a home escape plan.
Start by drawing a map for your home and follow these guidelines from the NFPA:.
● Plan two ways to escape from each room.
● Make sure all doors and windows leading outside open easily.
● Identify secondary routes: a window onto an adjacent roof or a collapsible ladder from a second floor window.
● If you live in a multi-story building, plan to use the stairs – never the elevator.
Practice your escape drills at least twice a year. Also recommend to practice the drills at night as well as during the day.
When and How to Use Fire Extinguisher
Always put your safety first; if you are not confident in your ability to use a fire extinguisher, get out and call 9-1-1. The American Red Cross cautions you to evaluate the situation and ensure:
● Everyone has left or is leaving the home.
● The fire department has been called.
● The fire is small, not spreading, and there is not much smoke.
● Your back is to an exit you can use quickly.
Remember the acronym PASS:
Pull the pin.
Aim low at the base of the fire.
Squeeze the handle slowly.
Sweep the nozzle side to side.
Not all fire extinguishers will work on every fire. For home use, the National Fire Protection Association recommends a multi-purpose device large enough to put out a small fire but not so heavy that it will be difficult to handle. Review the instructions once a year.
For additional tips follow these links:
National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)