Fire Safety

Fire Safety

Fires can be furious and deadly. Each year, more than 600 children ages 14 and under die, and nearly 47,000 are injured in fires.

Despite a dramatic 56 percent decline in the fire death rate since the National SAFE KIDS Campaign began in 1988, fires remain a leading cause of unintentionalinjury-related death among children in the United States. But there are time-tested ways to prevent fire-related injuries.

Simply installing smoke alarms on every level of your home and in every sleeping area, for instance, cuts the chances of dying in a home ire in half. Keeping matches, lighters and other heat sources out of children's reach can help eliminate child-play fires - the leading cause of fire-related death for children 5 and under.

Preparation and education are key elements of preventing fire tragedies.  Planning and practicing a fire escape route with your family, and talking to your children about what to expect in a fire, are simple steps anyone can take. A prepared child is more likely to escape unharmed.

Why Kids Are at Risk:


Picture a fire from a child's point of view: smoke and flames suddenly sweep through his room. It is dark, hot, loud and scary. A large stranger comes in, wearing equipment that makes him look like a monster or an alien - or worse. Children's first instincts are often to hide from things that frighten them. But in the case of a fire, those instincts can be deadly. Kids under 5 are at greatest risk when fire strikes. They may panic and hide in closets or under beds. Young children also need special help to escape.


Kids are at grave risk of injury and death from residential fires because they have less control of their environment than adults and limited ability to react appropriately. More than 40 percent of residential fire-related deaths among children ages 9 and under occur when the child is attempting to escape, is unableto act or is acting irrationally. Although an escape plan may help to reduce these deaths, only 26 percent of households have developed and practiced a plan.


The youngest children are at greatest risk. Kids ages 5 and under are more than twice as likely to die in a fire as the rest of the population. More than half of the children in this age group who die are asleep at the time of the fire, and another one-third of them are too young to react appropriately.


Older kids are often at risk due to their own curiosity. Studies indicate that an estimated 38 percent of children ages 6 to 14 have played with fire at least once. Child-play home fires tend to begin in a bedroom where children are left alone. Nearly 80 percent of these are started by children playing with matches or lighters. Boys are nearly twice as likely as girls to play with fire.
 

Other risk factors:

• Children in homes without working smoke alarms are at the greatest risk. Households without working smoke alarms are approximately two and a half times more likely to have a fire in their homes.
   
• Home cooking equipment is the leading cause of residential fires and fire-related injuries. However, residential fires caused by smoking materials (i.e. cigarettes) are the leading cause of fire-related death, accounting for nearly 23 percent of all fatalities.
   
• Home fires and fire-related deaths are more likely to occur during the cold weather months, December through February, when there is a significant rise in the use of portable or area heating equipment such as fireplaces, space heaters and wood stoves.
   
• Children living in rural areas have a dramatically higher risk of dying in a residential fire. Death rates in rural communities are more than two times higher than in large cities, and more than three times higher than in large towns and small cities.
   

Smoke Detectors:


Fires and burns kill hundreds of children each year and permanently scar thousands more. Yet more fire victims die from smoke than flames. Smoke can overwhelm a child or adult in minutes.

Protect your family:

• Install smoke detectors outside all sleeping areas and on every level of your home.
• Test them monthly following manufacturers' instructions. Change batteries at least once a year - even if they are still working.
• Caution: Never remove batteries for use in toys, a flashlight, or radio.

   

Escape:
How would you get out of your home in case of fire? How about your children? How would they escape from a second or third floor?

Plan fire escape routes and practice them.

• Draw a simple picture of your home.
• Plan two ways to get out of every room.
• Agree on an outside meeting place.
• Decide who'll take charge of each child.
• Discuss the plan with your family.
• Practice escapes at night. That's when most deadly fires occur.
   

NOTE: Show children who live in high-rise buildings the shortest route to a safe exit.  Warn them not to use the elevator.


Flames Are No game


Fire fascinates children. Even if they know fire is dangerous, they are amazed by flames.


Teach your children what to do in a fire:

1. GET OUT FAST, SECONDS COUNT.  Phone for help from a neighbor's home, not from inside a burning building.
2. CRAWL LOW under the smoke.
3. TEST the door. If it's hot or there's smoke, use another way out.
4. ONCE OUT, STAY OUT . There's nothing more important in your home than you. If someone is missing, tell a firefighter.
5. DESIGNATE AN OUTSIDE MEETING PLACE for all family members to gather.

Adults who smoke while drinking alcohol or who fall asleep while smoking cause a large number of home fires that kill or injure children. If you must smoke, do it with care.


If Clothing Catches on Fire:


Some children falsely believe that their clothes will protect them from fire. Show children, age 3 and older, what to do if their clothes catch fire. Practice with them.

1. STOP. Running fans the flames, making fire burn faster.
2. SHOUT for help. Don't run for help.
3. DROP to the floor. Cover your face.
4. ROLL back and forth to put out flames.
5. COOL a burn with cool water.
    

Matches and Lighters:Teach young children that:

• Matches and lighters are tools for adults, not toys.
• Children who play with matches or lighters can be badly burned and can hurt others.
• If they find matches or lighters, tell an adult the location right away.
  
  TIP... STORE MATCHES AND liGHTERS OUT OF THE REACH OF YOUNG CHILDREN. For children, ages 3 to 8, curiosity about matches and lighters is normal. But more than one-third of the burns to these children are the result of playing with matches.

Protecting Your Family:


A small fire can grow into a deadly one within minutes. To help prevent a tragedy, closely inspect your home to eliminate potential hazards. Prepare your home for an emergency, and teach your family about the dangers of fire and how to escape. If a child is coached properly ahead of time, he or she will have a better chance of surviving.


Eliminate potential hazards:

• Keep matches, lighters and other heat sources out of children's reach. Playing with matches and lighters is the leading cause of fire deaths for children ages 5 and under.
• Keep flammable items such as clothing, furniture, newspapers or magazines away from the fireplace, heater or radiator.
• Keep all portable heaters out of children's reach.
• Avoid plugging several appliance cords into the same electrical socket.
• Replace old or frayed electrical wires and appliance cords, and keep them on top of, not beneath rugs.
• Store all flammable liquids such as gasoline outside of the home.
   

Prepare your home:

• Install smoke alarms on every level of your home and in every sleeping area. Consider installing both ionization alarms, which are better at sensing flaming fires, and photoelectric alarms, which are better at sensing slow, smoky fires.
• Test smoke alarms monthly. Maintain alarms by replacing batteries at least once a year, and replace alarms every 10 years. Plan and practice two escape routes out of each room of the house. It is important to have an alternate escape route in case one is blocked by fire. Fire drills should be practiced spontaneously both during the day and at night, since more than 50 percent of fire deaths in the home occur between 9 p.m. and 6 a.m.
• Keep furniture and other heavy objects out of the way of doors and windows, so they won't block an escape.
• Designate an outside meeting place, so all members of the family can be accounted for quickly.

Teach Safety:


Children should know the sound of the smoke alarm. When they hear it, teach them to:

• Crawl low under smoke. An estimated three-fourths of childhood fire deaths are caused by the smoke and toxic gases produced as a fire develops and spreads.
• Touch doors before opening them. If the door is hot, use an alternative exit.
• Never go back into a burning building. Children should be reminded not to stop or return for anything, such as a toy or to call 9-1-1. A call to 9-1-1 should be placed after leaving the premises.
• "Stop, drop and roll." Upon leaving the burning house or building, children whose clothes have caught on fire should immediately stop, drop to the ground and roll themselves back and forth quickly to extinguish the flames.
• Take children to your local fire station for a tour. Children will be able to see a firefighter in full gear and learn that he or she is someone who saves children ? not someone to be afraid of or hide from.
• Also, be sure you're not teaching your children bad habits. Don't let them see you smoke in bed or disconnect smoke alarm batteries!
   

Protecting Communities:


Each year, U.S. fire departments respond to nearly 440,000 residential fires ? one every 70 seconds ? and these fires account for only 22 percent of all reported fire incidents. The loss of life and property involved significantly impacts our communities. The total annual cost of fire-related deaths and injuries just among children ages 14 and under is estimated at $5.5 billion.


As with many risks to children, legislation can help protect kids from fire. Due to the proven effectiveness of smoke alarms in preventing death and injury, many states and the District of Columbia now have comprehensive laws requiring smoke alarms in both new and existing dwellings. However, far too many states have no comprehensive smoke alarm laws, and even more have a variety of laws covering only specific situations, such as new dwellings or multi-occupancy dwellings. In addition, due to lack of enforcement, many children still live in homes where smoke alarms are not present.


In 1994, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission issued a mandatory safety standard requiring disposable and novelty cigarette lighters to be child-resistant. Since the standard has been in effect, the number of child-play lighter fires has declined 42 percent, and the number of deaths associated with these fires has declined 31 percent.


What SAFE KIDS is doing:


More than 90 percent of SAFE KIDS coalitions have fire departments as members. Firefighters are an integral part of SAFE KIDS and have been instrumental in educating children about fire prevention. Many host open houses to teach kids not to be afraid of firefighters in uniform. Others help kids learn how to react when they see fire or smoke. Our coalitions across the country educate children in schools about fire safety and injury prevention.


SAFE KIDS works with First Alert and the United States Fire Administration to provide discounted smoke alarms to families in need across America ? so far, thanks to the generosity of these two supporters, SAFE KIDS has distributed more than 100,000 smoke alarms nationwide. The U.S. Fire Administration also provides funds to educate families in high-risk areas about fire prevention, smoke alarm maintenance and installation, and the importance of escape plans. Through the U.S. Fire Administration, SAFE KIDS distributes more than $50,000 each year to state and local coalitions to help support and sustain community fire safety education programs.


SAFE KIDS is frequently invited to collaborate with national organizations such as the National Fire Protection Association, National Association of State Fire Marshals and the Congressional Fire Services Institute on lifesaving initiatives such as monitoring and encouraging stronger fire safety legislation, writing fire safety curricula and promoting the SAFE KIDS approach to fire prevention at industry conferences. SAFE KIDS has also been invited to participate in many public health coalitions that promote fire safety. For example, SAFE KIDS is a proud member of the For a Safer America Coalition, a group that creates and distributes the "Be Cool About Fire Safety" videos.


SAFE KIDS has been invited by the U.S. Fire Administration to participate in national strategy sessions on fire prevention.


How you can help:

• Support your local and volunteer fire departments.
   
• Find out about your state's smoke alarm laws.  Work with other parents and concerned groups to advocate for more comprehensive laws and stronger enforcement efforts.
   
• Find your local SAFE KIDS coalition and join their efforts to protect children from fire-related injury and death.
   

Frequently Asked Questions:

1. At what temperature should I set my hot water heater to prevent scalding my child?
   Hot water heaters should be set at 120 Fahrenheit or below to prevent scald burns to children.
   
    
2. Where in my home should I put the smoke alarm?
   Install smoke alarms in every sleeping area and on every level of your home. Central locations such as the living room, the top of the stairwell and the outside bedroom doors are good places.
   
    
3. How often should I test and replace my smoke alarm?
   Test smoke alarms once a month and replace batteries at least once a year. The alarm itself should be replaced every 10 years.
   
    
4. Where should I put a carbon monoxide (CO) detector in my home?
   Place CO detectors outside of sleeping areas and at least 15 feet away from fuel-burning appliances such as furnaces, wood stoves and fuel-burning kitchen stoves.
   
    
5. What do I do if my CO detector goes off?
   If your CO detector alarm sounds, ventilate the home immediately by opening windows and outside doors. If anyone begins to experience flu-like symptoms, evacuate the house and call the fire department. After ventilating the home, you should turn off all fuel-burning appliances and call a qualified technician to inspect for sources of CO.