Fire Safety

We had fire drills at school when I was growing up and fire drills at work when I started work at my first real grown-up job. so it was only natural that we have fire drills at home.

Whever there was a fire in the neighborhood that resulted in a fatality, the fire department would canvass the neighborhood, passing out smoke detectors and fire safety tip booklets. It is now the law that all homes including apartments have smoke detectors installed to prevent unnecessary deaths due to fires.

Most fire deaths are from smoke inhalation so smoke detectors with working batteries are very important. Batteries should be checked once a month and replaced when signals they give are weak or casn barely be heard.

These tips below should prevent fatalities in case you are caught in a fire.

If a smoke detector goes off, before you open the door, feel the door, if it is hot, do not open the door as the fire may be right outside. Try to leave by a window. Sit on the window ledge and signal to let firefighters or others know where you are so they can save you. If possible, stuff clothes underneath the doors to stop smoke from coming into the room where you are.

If the door is cool, bend down low and very slowly and cautiously open the door and crawl to the designated exit or to help get out smaller children or elderly relatives. Once in a group, everyone crawl out and meet at the designated place.

Never take the elevator in the event of a fire, take the stairs and again stay low if you are able to take the stairway out.

Families should have fire drills at least once a month to prepare for what to do in the event of a fire. Older children or adults should be in charge of getting the smaller children out of the house in the event of a fire and smaller children can be taught what to do also in the event of a fire such as calling for an older child or adult and to NEVER hide in a closet or under the bed.

Everyone should be taught to get out as fast as possible and do not stop to call 911 Get out first and call 911 from a neighbor's house of from a cell phone.

Once out, everyone should meet at a place designated as the meet up place during your fire drills.

Contact your local fire department for more safety tips and remember to have a fire drill and advise your neighbors and friends to have fire drills as well. The lives you save may be your own.