Fire Prevention Week continues with today’s tip from the Crookston Fire Department. Learn two ways out of every room. In a fire, you may have only minutes to escape safely once the smoke alarm sounds. Knowing how to use that time wisely takes planning and practice.
According to firefighter Chris Klawitter, “New homes are built stronger, however in a fire, the materials used will fail faster.” Nation-wide there is a home fire every 90 seconds and home fires account for approximately 80% of fire deaths. The good news is the number of home fires has been steadily declining over the past few decades. However, the risk of dying in a home fire has increased by 10% since 1980. While people are getting better at preventing fires, there is still work to be done in educating people on how to safely escape a home fire.
Today’s homes burn faster than ever because of several factors:
· Newer homes are predominantly built with unprotected lightweight wood construction, which fails faster when it’s exposed to high temperatures causing it to weaken and collapse faster than homes built with dimensional lumber.
· Newer homes tend to be designed with lots of open spaces and high ceilings, creating an ideal environment for the fire to grow and spread quickly.
· Most modern home furnishings include synthetic materials that burn very quickly and at higher temperatures, generating black, toxic smoke and gases that make it extremely difficult to see and breathe in a matter of moments.
When you’re out and about, situational awareness is key! Remember to be aware of your surroundings and plan for how you would escape a building in the event of a fire or other emergency.
· When you’re preparing to enter an occupancy, ask yourself if it looks safe and well-maintained.
· Check to see that doors aren’t locked or blocked from the inside.
· Look for the two closest exits and identify the path you would take to reach them.
· If you hear the fire alarm system sound, take it seriously and exit the building calmly but quickly. This is particularly important in larger occupancies like malls and movie theaters, where it may be too late to escape if you wait to see evidence of fire.
