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| Fire Safety in the Home | |
| Smoke Alarms Save Lives | |
| Exit Drill in the Home | |
| Stop, Drop & Roll | |
| What Can Cause Fires in the Home? |  |
The home, whether it's a house, mobile home, condominium or apartment can be a potentially dangerous structure if its occupants are not aware of fire hazards and how to prevent them. Following, are some causes that are preventable: Cooking Fires |
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| Cooking fires are a major cause of home fires. They are usually caused by cooking oil overheating (without someone to watch it), grease that has accumulated on the stove or range hood, and dish towels or pot holders left to close to burners. What You Can Do: When preparing food, don't leave the cooking area unattended. If a pan catches on fire, do not carry it ... leave it on the stove, turn off the heat, cover the pan with a lid or use baking soda to extinguish the fire. Provide a safe place for dishtowels and pot holders away from the heat of the stove. Don't wear loose clothing while cooking and never reach across a burner. | |
| Furniture Fires | |
| Fires in couches, chairs and bedding are usually caused by someone carelessly dropping cigarettes or matches between the cushions. What You Can Do: Keep ashtrays in a safe place, not on the arms of sofas and chairs where they can be easily knocked off. | |
| Electrical Fires | |
| Cracked and damaged appliance cords are the most common source of electrical fires. What You Can Do: Check all electrical cords periodically to determine their condition and, if damaged, replace immediately. Don't run cords under carpets and throw rugs. | |
| Matches & Lighters | |
| Unfortunately, each year, thousands of people die in home fires which were started by children either playing with or using matches. What You Can Do: When children find matches or a lighter, they need to tell an adult. Do not play with lighters, matches or any open flame. | |
| Heating Fires | |
| Fires that occur in furnaces, heaters and fireplaces are usually a result of poor maintenance or faulty equipment. What You Can Do: Never move furniture too close to a heater. Hot water heater closets should never be used as a storage area. Fireplaces should always have a protective screen to prevent sparks from flying onto carpet or furniture. Never burn newspapers or trash in the fireplace. | |
| Flammable Liquid Fires | |
| Gasoline, the most common flammable liquid, produces invisible vapors that can catch fire. They can be ignited by a spark or flame. Once ignited, it can cause an explosion. What You Can Do: Gasoline should be stored in approved safety cans. Always use a funnel when pouring and do it outside and away from heaters or any open flame. | |
| Trash & Rubbish Fires | |
| Fires can easily start where trash and rubbish is allowed to collect. What You Can Do: If you save newspapers, be sure they are bundled tightly and stacked neatly, away from any heat source. Trash should be kept in a trashcan or plastic trash bag, away from any heat source. | |
| Back to Fire Safety in the Home | |
| Smoke Alarms Save Lives |
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| Did You Know: Most fatal home fire happen at night while people are asleep and the smell of smoke usually won't wake you? In fact, the toxic gases in the smoke can put you in a deeper sleep. Smoke detectors can awaken and alert you to a fire, thus giving you time to escape. | |
| What You Can Do: Install at least one smoke detector on every level of your home, especially outside your family's sleeping area. Remember: Change Your Clock, Change Your Battery. Your smoke detector battery should be changed at least once a year. A good way to remember to change your battery is every October when you turn your clocks back one hour for daylight savings time. Of course, if your smoke detector "chirps" or gives out an unusual noise, change your battery right away. | |
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| Exit Drills in the Home |  |
| Most fatal home fires start when you are asleep and least prepared. If you plan ahead, you can save your family from disaster. | |
| What You Can Do: Determine two ways to escape from each bedroom. One can be the normal exit, the other can be a window that opens easily. Upper levels should be equipped with an escape ladder. Draw a floor plan of your home. Show windows, rooftops, doors and stairs that can be used for escape. Have a specific escape route for each family member. Set a special meeting place outdoors for a head count of family members. Practice escape procedures with your entire family. Sleep with bedroom door closed. It will increase your escape time. If you suspect fire, test the door. If it's hot to the touch, do not open it--the hall is already too hot for you to enter and escape through. If door seems okay, enter hallway cautiously. If it is too hot to enter, quickly shut your door and escape through window. Remind smaller children that they should never hide during a fire, so they can be easily found by firefighters. Remind them that the firefighter is their friend. | |
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Stop, Drop & Roll It is important to know what to do if your clothing ever catches on fire. How can your clothes catch on fire? By coming into contact with a hot stove, match, cigarette, heater or fireplace, just to name a few. If your clothes ever do catch fire, it will happen quickly, so you need to know what to do ahead of time. |
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| STOP: Do not run, because running fans the flames and makes them hotter. | |
| DROP: Drop down to the ground. Heat and flames like to rise. When you drop to the ground, the heat and flames will still rise, but they will move away from your face and head. | |
| ROLL: Covering your face with your hands, roll all around on the ground. This will smother the flames and fire and extinguish them. Flames can also be smothered by towels. blankets or coats. | |
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