How to Prevent the Tragedy of a Home House Fire

From November though February, heating equipment is the leading cause of home fires in the United States. A home fire occurs in an American home every 85 seconds, and someone dies from a home fire every 2.5 hours. But many of these tragedies could have easily been prevented, had the homeowners had plans in place for home heating safety and home fire safety. The first line of defense is having good, working smoke alarms installed in each bedroom and the kitchen.

You can help avoid the risk of having a fire caused by heating equipment by following a few home heating safety tips:

Electric heaters

If you use an electronic portable space heater in your home, be sure to maintain clearance space of at least three feet around and in front of the heater to keep it away from combustible items. Never operate the heater while sleeping, and use only heaters that have built-in safety features such as a tip-over safety switch that will turn the heater off automatically if it is accidentally turned over or kicked.

Kerosene or gas

If you use a kerosene or propane portable heater, always fill the heater outside and if possible, turn it off outside. Never use gasoline or any other fuel not approved by the heater manufacturer. Fuel heaters must e cooled before you refill the tank with fuel, and refilling should be done outside of the house.

Fireplaces and wood stoves

Have the flue pipes and chimneys cleaned once a year before winter, to be sure there is no dangerous buildup of creosote inside the chimney flue. Creosote is highly combustible and is a common cause of chimney fires. To help prevent creosote deposits, do not burn green wood, trash, damp wood, or wood scraps. If your fireplace or wood stove has glass or metal screen doors, be sure they are closed while the fire is burning, to keep sparks or hot embers from jumping out of the fire onto your floor. Never go to bed without closing the doors, even if the fire seems to have burned out.

Even if you have followed secure safety practices to avoid a fire from heating equipment, you should establish a fire evacuation plan in case something else happens to cause a fire in your home. For example, a fire can start from an unattended burning cigarette, faulty wiring, or a cooking mishap such as spilling hot oil or dropping combustible food in a hot oven. If a fire does break out, you need to have a plan in place in advance, to keep your family safe while waiting for help to arrive.

First, put together a good representative drawing of the layout of your home. Indicate notable landmarks in the drawing, including exits and where fire extinguishers are located. Also indicate a safe place for family members and people in the house to meet outside of the home during an emergency. Each room should have two designated exits-either windows or doors.

Meet with your family members and any other residents in your home to discuss the layout you have created. Walk around the house and point out all of the items identified in the drawing, and make sure that everyone knows where the fire extinguishers are located, and where the pre-arranged meeting area is.

Test the fire alarms to be sure the batteries are working, and to be sure that everyone, particularly children, knows what the alarm sounds like. Set up a time to do a trial fire drill to see if your layout and instructions are accurate. Be sure to set goals to achieve in terms of time, meeting place, and accountability for every person in the household.

Instruct people that during an emergency, they should leave the house immediately and stay out, and go immediately to the pre-arranged meeting place. Never go back in, even if you are trying to help others escape.

Call 911 from a neighbor’s home and wait for trained emergency help to arrive. Don’t waste time trying to save property - material things can be replaced, but your life cannot. If someone in your household does not show up at the pre-arranged meeting place, do not try to return to the house to save them; tell the firefighters, who are equipped to perform rescues in a fire.

You may want to have your home and your safety plan evaluated by a fire marshal in your area. Local fire departments will usually send someone out to inspect your home at no charge. After all, if they help you prepare your home to avoid a fire, it makes their job easier.

Nearly 4,000 people die annually in home fires in the U.S. A family should never have to experience the loss of a loved one because of a fire that could have been easily prevented with a little bit of preparedness. By following these home heating and fire safety tips, you will go far in ensuring that your home and your family stay safe this winter.