There are a lot of things that you can do to lessen the risk of you and your loved ones being caught in a fire, and it all comes down to being prepared. There are a few easy ways that you can make your home a far safer place should a fire occur, and they might just save a life.
Control It Early On
If you’re able to stop a fire before it can spread, or better yet stop it from becoming a proper firs in the first place then that is clearly the best way forward.
The first step is to make sure that everyone in your home, including children, has some level of education when it comes to fire safety. Children need to know to stay as far away as possible and to not try and put the fire out: things can get worse if it’s not put out correctly. Adults on the other hand need to know the precautions to take in order to prevent fire. These include:
- Keeping matches, lighters etc away from children.
- Only smoking outside.
- Make sure fireplaces and fire pits are properly extinguished.
- Stay in the kitchen when you’re cooking, and don’t leave anything unattended.
- Ensure appliances are turned off.
- Regularly make sure smoke alarms all work.
What To Do Next
If you have not been able to prevent the fire from happening then the most important thing that you need to do is to make sure that you and your loved ones are all safe.
One thing that I would always recommend to people is to plan a fire exit in your home. I’m not saying you need to hold a full fire drill and drag everyone out of their beds in the middle of the night (although I do know people who have done this), but you should know where the best escape route is. If your home has two storeys it’s especially important, because you need to know how to escape if you’re unable to make it downstairs.
Here’s what to do in the event of a fire:
- Don’t try and put out a fire unless you know what you’re doing. And even if you think you do know what you’re doing, if possible leave it to the fire department.
- Most people’s gut instinct is to throw water onto a fire to put it out. but if you do this with an electrical or an oil fire then all you’re going to do is make the situation worse.
- Make sure that you and your loved ones are safe before thinking about your belongings. If there is no time to get your belongings then you just need to forget it.
- If necessary, crawl. Smoke and heat both rise, which means if you’re stood up then your head is in the worst position. If there is a lot of smoke, or if it is getting very hot then crawling is your best option.
- Test the doorknobs before opening doors. If a doorknob feels hot then it’s probably not safe to open the door.
- Remember, opening doors makes the fire spread faster.
- Once you’re out do not go back in. Firefighters will rescue what they can, but the best thing that you can do is to stay where it is safe.
- If you’re stuck in a room then don’t panic. Close the door and cover the cracks with clothing or blankets to stop the smoke from getting in. If you can then call someone from the room and tell them where you are. If you can’t then hang some clothing or a piece of cloth out of the window to alert the fire service that there is someone in there.
Don’t Let it Get That Far
Obviously these are all things that you don’t want to be thinking about. So the best thing that you can do is to take the first steps to make sure a fire doesn’t happen.
Early warning by smoke alarms can save lives, which is why we check and do maintenance on smoke alarms and make sure that they are working and will protect the people that live there. Have a look at what we offer. We can even install new smoke alarms for you to comply with the new smoke alarm regulation.