Fire prevention week is here (Oct. 6 to 12), and that means it's time to check your smoke alarms as one way to keep yourself and your family safe.
This year, the Chilliwack Fire Department has teamed up with the National Fire Protection Association, the official sponsor of Fire Prevention Week for over 100 years, to promote this year’s campaign, "Smoke alarms: Make them work for you!"
The campaign strives to educate everyone about the importance of having working smoke alarms in the home, and works to educate everyone about simple-but-important actions they can take to keep themselves and those around them safe from home fires.
Today’s homes burn faster than ever. You may have as little as two minutes to safely escape a home fire from the time the smoke alarm sounds. Your ability to get out of a home during a fire depends on early warning from smoke alarms and advance planning.
Chilliwack Fire Department encourages all residents to embrace this year's theme.
For those who are deaf or hard of hearing, there are other ways to ensure safety during a fire. There are smoke alarms and alert devices that alert people who are deaf or hard of hearing in various ways.
These devices include strobe lights that flash to alert people when the smoke alarm sounds, and pillow or bed shakers designed to work with your smoke alarm.
More fire prevention information and tips can be found at chilliwack.com/fire, or by calling 604-792-8713.
Here are some other safety tips for home fire prevention, courtesy of the Chilliwack Fire Department.
Cooking Safety Tips
- Stay in the kitchen when you are frying, grilling or broiling food.
- Turn off the stove if you must leave the room for even a short period of time.
- When you are simmering, boiling, baking, or roasting food, check it regularly, stay in the home, and use a timer to remind you.
- Use the stove's back burners whenever possible, especially if you have young children.
- Keep children and pets at least 1 metre (3 feet) away from the stove.
- When you cook, wear clothing with tight-fitting or short sleeves.
- Allow food cooked in a microwave oven to cool for a minute or more before you remove it from the oven; remember to use oven mitts.
- Open microwaved food slowly. Hot steam escaping from the container can cause painful burns.
Smoking Safety Tips
- Designate a smoking area outside the home.
- Provide smokers with non-tip, deep, sturdy ashtrays.
- Keep smoking materials away from anything that can burn, like mattresses, bedding and upholstered furniture.
- Choose fire-safe cigarettes.
- Soak butts and ashes before dumping in a waste container.
- Keep matches and lighters away from children - lock in a high cupboard.
Heating Safety Tips
- Keep space heaters at least 1 metre (3 feet) from people and from anything that can burn, such as curtains and bedding.
- Turn space heaters off when you go to bed or leave the room.
- Have your furnace professionally inspected and serviced every year.
- Have your chimneys cleaned and inspected before each heating season.
Electrical Safety Tips
- Replace or repair loose or frayed cords on all electrical devices or extension cords.
- Avoid overloading receptacles.
- Avoid running extension cords across doorways or under carpets.
- Install ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) electrical outlets in kitchens, bathrooms, outdoor areas, basements, and garages.
Candles
- Keep candles away from anything that can burn.
- Use a stable non-combustible candle holder.
- Extinguish all lit candles before you leave your room or go to sleep.
