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Plan Ahead and Prevent Residential Fires
Written by
Amanda Mascelli
, Special to Redcross.org
Wednesday, March 30, 2005 — As Mother Nature teeters on the brink of residual snow falls and spring showers, winter storm warnings and tornado watches tend to be the themes of the disaster preparedness messages Americans receive this time of year. Although they do not grab the national headlines like ice storms and tornados, knowing how to prepare for residential fires proves priceless to the millions of Americans affected each year by these devastating disasters.
Fires are among the deadliest disasters to destroy homes across the country. Each year, nearly 5,000 Americans die in fires, and 80 percent of those deaths occur in home fires, a devastating fact considering that most residential fires are preventable.
George Washington University students in Washington, D.C. recently experienced first hand a tragic fire that could have been prevented when sheets from a student’s bed caught on fire as they came into contact with a portable electric grill. Students at George Washington University, like many other colleges across the country, are prohibited from having grills and various other electric appliances in their dorms rooms. The student whose room caught fire was listed in critical condition and damage contained to the room is estimated at $10,000.
"Although many residential fires are preventable, fires can ignite quickly and without warning. You and your household may have little time to decide the best method to escape -- that is why it is so important to plan two routes out of every room and a meeting place just outside your home,” said Keith Robertory, Fire Safety Expert. “Plan ahead for residential fires and other disasters and don't wait until it happens."
Preparedness is your best weapon against deadly fires. Follow these simple steps to make your home fire safe.
- Smoke alarms save lives. Install a smoke alarm outside each sleeping area and on each additional level of your home. If people sleep with doors closed, install smoke alarms inside sleeping areas, too. Use the test button to check each smoke alarm once a month. When necessary, replace batteries immediately. Replace all batteries at least once a year. Smoke alarms become less sensitive over time. Replace your smoke alarms every ten years.
- Consider having one or more working fire extinguishers in your home. Get training from the fire department in how to use them.
- Consider installing an automatic fire sprinkler system in your home.
- Determine at least two ways to escape from every room of your home. Consider escape ladders for sleeping areas on the second or third floor. Learn how to use them and store them near the window.
- Select a location outside your home where everyone would meet after escaping. Practice your escape plan at least twice a year.
Follow these safety tips in the event that a fire strikes.
- Once you are out, stay out! Call the fire department from a neighbor’s home.
- If you see smoke or fire in your first escape route, use your second way out. If you must exit through smoke, crawl low under the smoke to your exit. If you are escaping through a closed door, feel the door before opening it. If it is warm, use your second way out.
- If smoke, heat, or flames block your exit routes, stay in the room with the door closed. Signal for help using a bright-colored cloth at the window. If there is a telephone in the room, call the fire department and tell them where you are.
For related materials in English and Spanish as well as materials for kids, please contact your local Red Cross Chapter or check out http://www.redcross.org/services/disaster/0,1082,0_584_,00.html.
In addition, financial planning is a vital part of disaster planning. To learn more about how to avoid a financial crisis when disaster strikes please check out: http://www.redcross.org/financialplanning.
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