Presentation Objectives• To educate participants on how

to avoid fires and fire related injuries.

• To create awareness of fire deaths and injuries and their common causes.

• To inform participants of their personal responsibility toward fire safety and injury

prevention.

HOME FIRE STATS

Statistics show that, on average, fire kills eight people each week in Canada, with residential fires accounting for 73% of these fatalities.Newer homes and furnishings are made with more synthetics which make fires ignite and burn faster. They also release more toxic gases when burned. Most fire victims die from smoke or toxic gases and not from actual burns. Deadly conditions are reached much more quickly now than in the 1970s when more natural materials were used in home and furnishings.The amount of safe escape time was consistently shorter and the fire growth rates were faster. It is thought that synthetic materials currently found in homes contributed to this change. The study concluded that because fires could be more aggressive, the time needed to escape home fires has been reduced from approximately 17 minutes to as little as three minutes.This gives less time for occupants to escape a fire and is shorter than the seven minute response time target for fire services. This disparity can mean the difference between life and death.

• More serious injuries happen at home than on the job

• Precautions aren’t always taken

• Safety should be 24/7

Why Talk AboutHome Safety?

In the Home• People feel the safest in their homes,

however residential properties are where most fires and fire deaths occur.

– 76% of all structure fires occurred in residential properties.

– 97% of structural fire deathsoccurred in residential properties.

Fire Safety

– Wiring and appliances

– Fireplaces and stoves

– Furnace/electrical– Kitchen– Workshop/Garage

– Smoke detectors

Always think Home Escape PlanAlways think Home Escape Plan– Don’t stop—just get out!

– Move quickly but calmly

– STOP, DROP, and ROLL!

– Don’t open hot door

– Stay as low as possible

Home Escape Plan show that picture to other post it in your homes

– Call 911 or fire department from outside

– Go to chosen meeting place

– Tell firefighters if pets are inside

Know your address is it posted?

1. Unattended cooking

2. Combustibles too close to a heat source

On Average:

• 40% of all home fires• 36% of all home fire injuries• 1 out of every 8 homes • Mostly on the cook top• Usually in the first 15 minutes of cooking.

Unattended cooking

can lead to a fire

that can destroy a kitchen

and spread to the rest of a home

Fire started by a microwave oven

• Keep combustibles away from heat sources

• Stay in or near the kitchen while cooking

• Wear short or tight-fitting sleeves

• Cook on rear burners

• Keep pot handles turned away from the edge

• Keep surfaces clean; prevent grease build-up

Reduce Your Chance of a Cooking Fire

• Keep flammable items away from heat sources.

Curtains, potholders, towels, clothing, etc.

• Keep flammable cleaners away from heat sources.

Clean your stovetop frequently to avoid grease build up.

Grease Fires

• Always have the matching lid nearby!– If you have a small grease fire you can

smother it with the lid.– NEVER PUT WATER ON A GREASE

FIRE!

This video shows one cup of water on an inch of burning grease.

• Don’t cook if drowsy or impaired

• Don’t allow kids or pets to play in the kitchen

• Turn off the stove to answer the phone or the door

If a fire occurs on the stove top –

• Do NOT use – A fire extinguisher– Baking soda– A towel

• NEVER pour water on a grease fire

• NEVER try to move a pan that’s on fire

For a grease fire in a pan –

1. Slide a lid over the pan,

2. Turn off the burner

3. Let it cool

If you don’t have a lid use:– Larger pan

– Cookie sheet

– Wooden bread board

For a fire in a microwave oven• Keep the door closed• Unplug unit if safe to do so• Have the microwave oven

serviced before using again

This is a handle for opening the oven. It’sNOT A TOWEL RACK!

1. Combustible material too close (50%)

2. Candles left unattended (18%)3. Playing with a candle (5% - mostly

kids)

Falling asleep – 12% of candle fires, 25% of associated deaths

• Christmas• Christmas Eve• New Year’s Day• New Year’s Eve• Halloween

A candle started a fire in this apartment while the renter slept.

• Always use a candleholder

• Make sure it’s– Sturdy, won’t tip– Non-

combustible– Large enough to

collect dripping wax

• Do not use candles that have combustible items embedded in them

• Extinguish all candles when leaving a room or going to sleep

• Keep candles away from combustibles and flammable liquids

Burn candles inside a 1-foot “circle of safety”

• Never leave children unattended in a room with a burning candle

• Don’t allow candles (and incense) in children’s or teens’ rooms

• Store candles out of reach and sight of small children

• Never leave a burning candle unattended

• Use candles cautiously during a power outage

• Never use a candle when checking pilot lights or fueling equipment

• Avoid using any candles after an earthquake

Lamp, light fixture, or light bulb – 28%

Wiring – 22 %

Outlet, receptacle, or switch – 17%

Defective cords and plugs start 12% of electrical fires but cause 39% of civilian deaths resulting from electrical fires!

20,900 plus homes

500 plus people deaths including kids

1,100 people injuries

$862 million plus in property damage every year

This fire was caused by a 150-watt bulb used in a 60-watt lamp.

• Use lighting safely– Place lamps on level, uncluttered

surfaces– Secure lampshades to protect

bulb if lamp is knocked over– Never drape fabric or other

combustible material over any lamp

• Use light bulbs that do not exceed recommended wattages

• Lighting to be used outdoors should be designated as such

• Don’t misuse fuses and circuit breakers– If a fuse blows or a circuit

breaker trips correct the problem– Never replace a fuse or circuit

breaker with one that exceeds the circuit rating

– Never tape a circuit breaker in the open position

• Maintain electrical outlets– Replace old or

damaged with GFI receptacles

– Plug type should match outlet type

– Do not use a multi-plug adapter unless it has its own circuit breaker

• Maintain electrical appliances– Look for the UL label– Allow air space

around each– Unplug small

appliances when not in use

– Check government website for product recalls

• Care for electrical cords– Keep out of traffic paths– Replace if cracked, cut,

or frayed

Care for electrical cords

• Don’t push furniture against plugs in outlets

• Never run cords under carpets or through doorways

• Never alter plugs

If an outlet isn’t close enough:

• Re-arrange furniture• Have an electrician

install another outlet

• Use a multi-outlet adapter with its own circuit breaker

Extension cords are for temporary use only

• Heed warnings of electrical problems– Recurring blown fuses or tripped

circuit breakers– Feeling a tingle when touching an electrical appliance– Discolored wall outlets– Burning smell or odd odor – Sizzling sound at wall switches or

outlets– Flickering lights

• Knob and tube wiring often found in homes built prior to 1950

– Can become brittle over time

– Often impro-perly connected to newer wiring

– Unlikely to be able to carry the heavy load of multiple modern appliances –Best replaced by a

certified electrician

Knob

Tube

• Aluminum wiring, installed in homes during the 50s and 60s

– has been responsible for many home fires

– Biggest problem - connections with outlets and wall switches deteriorating over time

Aluminum wiring• Can be identified by the writing on the side of the insulation

Aluminum wiring • Can also be identified by the wire color

Lint, lint, and more lint!

•A clothes dryer that has to work harder to evacuate lint and moisture can

•trigger enough heat to cause some dryer components to malfunction •produce sparks or even flames

•sometimes produce enough heat to ignite lint or other nearby combustibles

Lint, lint, and more lint!

•A clothes dryer that has to work harder to evacuate lint and moisture can

•trigger enough heat to cause some dryer components to malfunction •produce sparks or even flames

•sometimes produce enough heat to ignite lint or other nearby combustibles

•Fires usually occur when lint builds up in the dryer or in the exhaust duct.

•Fires usually occur when lint builds up in the dryer or in the exhaust duct.

•Keep vent hose runs as straight and short as possible

•Keep vent hose runs as straight and short as possible

•Keep vent hose runs as straight and short as possible

•Keep vent hose runs as straight and short as possible

•Use smooth sided ducting, rigid if possible•Corrugated is more likely to collect lint•Vinyl is no longer allowed; it’s very dangerous!

•Have interior of cabinet cleaned out regularly

•Check and clean outlet regularly

•Make sure air is coming through while the dryer is operating

– Clothing is still damp at the end of a typical cycle– Drying requires longer times than normal– Clothes feel hotter than usual at the end of the

cycle – Outside of dryer is unusually hot – Damper (or flappers) on exhaust termination

doesn’t open or barely opens when dryer is on – Laundry room feels warmer or more humid than

normal – Unexplained moisture stains appear in

concealed dryer exhaust duct area – Burnt smells in laundry room

Signs that the lint screen or the exhaust duct is blocked.

• Flap covered or louvered vents help prevent birds/animals from nesting

•Don’t use any type of screening

•Clean filter before and after every load

• Follow the manufacturer’s recommendations.• If the exhaust duct system is not up to current

standard, have it replaced or corrected.• Install a fire extinguisher in laundry area, but

not over the dryer.• Install smoke alarm in laundry area.• Install CO alarm in laundry area (Gas dryer

only).• Replace a damaged lint filter.• Use caution not to crush or kink transition duct

behind dryer.• Never operate a dryer while sleeping or away

from home.• Deal with concerns immediately

Heating is the second leading cause of home fires

Keep anything that can burn at least three feet away from fireplaces, wood stoves, portable heaters, and radiators.When you leave a room or go to bed, turn heaters off or unplug them.

Most fires are PREVENTABLE!

Can not say Escape Routes enough in family safety

When the smoke alarm sounds, you may only have seconds or minutes to escape safely.

Have a meeting place for everyone to gather outside.

Plan two ways out, in case one way is filled with smoke or fire.

Know your escape routes and practice them.

Important Safety Elements

• Alarms

– Smoke

– Carbon Monoxide

• Fire extinguishers

• Residential Fire Sprinkler Systems

Alarm Placement & Maintenance

Make sure you can hear the alarm in every place in your home.

They should be loud enough to wake you from sleep.

Check them once a month.

Change the batteries once a year.

Replace them every 10 years.

Smoke Alarms

Get down and crawl that floor smoke and poisons gases are above you at all times in a fire

Breathing smoke can kill you! Smoke is toxic. If you must escape through

smoke, get low and go under the smoke.

Carbon Monoxide AlarmsCarbon monoxide (CO) is an invisible,

odorless, colorless gas. There is no way to detect it without an alarm.

Minnesota law requires carbon monoxide alarms in all homes, within ten feet of all sleeping areas.

Symptoms of CO poisoning mimic flu-like symptoms.If you’re feeling symptoms, immediately

move to an open window or go outdoors.

High levels of CO can be fatal, causing death within minutes.

Fire Extinguishers• Know how to use

them.

• Have them mounted in an obvious spot near an exit.

When in doubt, get out!

Residential Fire Sprinkler Systems

Fire sprinkler systems save lives

and reduce damage to your property.

• Only the sprinkler closest to the fire will activate, spraying water directly on the fire. – 90% of fires are contained by the

operation of just one sprinkler.

If you have a fire…

Leave, close the door, and call 9-1-1 from outside.

Report ALL fires to the fire department, even if you think you put them out!

Don’t ignore alarms!Even if your building has frequent alarms, you need to

leave when they go off. Once you’re out, STAY OUT!

Don’t go back inside for possessions or pets. Notify the fire department if anyone is unaccounted for.

You never know when it could be a real fire.