Stay Safe, Stay Prepared with Fire Escape Planning
The ability to escape quickly and safely during a home fire is critically dependent on early warning systems, such as smoke alarms, and thorough pre-planning escape paths. Fire can spread with alarming speed, often leaving as little as one or two minutes to evacuate once the alarm sounds.
Developing a Family Escape Plan
Creating a comprehensive fire escape plan is the cornerstone of ensuring safety during a fire. Draw a map of each level of the home. Show all doors and windows. Go to each room and point to the two ways out. Practice the plan with everyone in your household, including visitors.
Children, older adults, and people with disabilities may need assistance to wake up and get out. Make sure that someone will help them.
Teach your children how to escape on their own in case you cannot help them. Make sure they can open windows, remove screens, and unlock doors.
If There is a Fire
When the smoke alarm sounds, get out and stay out. Go to the outside meeting place. Call 9-1-1 or the fire department.
If smoke is blocking your first way out, use your second way out. Smoke is poisonous. If you must escape through smoke, get low and go under the smoke to your way out.
Before opening a door, feel the doorknob and then the door. If either is hot, leave the door closed and use your second way out. If you open a door, open it in a slow manner. Be ready to shut it if heavy smoke or fire is present.
If you cannot get out, close the door and cover vents and cracks around the door with cloth or tape to keep smoke out. Call 9-1-1 or your fire department. Say where you are and then signal for help at the window with a flashlight or a light-colored cloth.
Fire escape planning is an indispensable aspect of home safety. By developing a detailed escape plan, ensuring clear and accessible routes, memorizing emergency procedures, and conducting regular drills, families can significantly increase their chances of escaping safely during a fire. Stay safe, stay prepared, and make fire escape planning a priority in your home.
