I am sure that most of you remember way back from grade school how to "stop, drop, and roll." But have you taken the time to teach your children about fire safety and what to do if there is a fire? I mean, REALLY teach them (not just tell them "hey if there is a fire you want to get out"). My family and I recently moved into a home where our children are all on the top level of our home and we are a floor below them. I must say fire safety was one of the first things we focused on (in fact, the fire marshal was at our door the day we moved in to help us come up with a safety plan). Our local fire department was MORE THAN happy to help us out and I know they would be happy to help you and your family come up with some guidelines as well. For now, our fire department has shared the following very useful tips.
FIRE SAFETY PLANS AND TIPS
1. Have an escape plan – know 2 ways out of every room
(this could be a window, door, hallway, etc)
2. Check your smoke alarms every month – change batteries every 6 months
3. Own and know how to use an extinguisher (if you do not know how to use it
call your fire department, they are happy to help)
4.Stay low and go
Smoke is the real killer in a fire. About eight of every ten fire deaths are due to
breathing poisonous smoke and gases. Some victims never even see the flames.
5.Get out and stay out
6.Never second guess your decisions
7.Have a family meeting place
8.Know how to call 911 – especially if you don’t have a land line
Most families don't have land lines anymore and have a cell phone instead,
make sure you educate your kids on HOW to make a 911 call from your
cell phone
9.Feel the door for heat before you open it
10.Never leave cooking unattended
11. Never corner yourself in a fire
Other tips
Teach your children to hang a pillow case or sheet from their bedroom window if they cannot get out, this alerts the fire department that there is someone trapped in that room.
Most extinguishers operate using the PASS method:
| A HUGE thank you to our local fire department for their assistance in this post. We are grateful and truly hope none of our readers ever have to use these tips! Do you have a fire safety plan? What things are you planning on discussing with your kids regarding fire safety? |
There was recently a housefire in my hometown that killed 6 people. We drove by the house and it was shocking.
ReplyDeleteThis really prompted us to review fire safety procedures in our house. It's not something we thought about before at all. We have always had smoke detectors, but now we have a plan, too. Good and important post!
Im so glad that you posted this! We went over our fire plan with our kids not too long ago, but this post brought out a lot of things we may not have covered as well as we thought. Thank you.
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