Winter is an especially dangerous time for home fires, as space heaters, holiday lights and candles get more use - it is no surprise that fires in the home are more common between December and February. The U.S. Fire Administration is part of the Department of Homeland Security, and their Web site has a wealth of information to help make this holiday season both warm and safe:
Fire Safety Tips: [ http://www.firesafety.gov/citizens/firesafety/index.shtm ]
- Never underestimate your children's curiosity about fire [ http://www.usfaparents.gov/matches/ ]. Strongly discourage casual contact with matches and lighters.
- Have smoke detector [ http://www.firesafety.gov/citizens/alarms/index.shtm ] on every floor of your home, and test them every month.
- Sadly, two-thirds of home fires that kill children under age 5 occur in homes without a working smoke alarm. [ http://www.usfaparents.gov/alarms/ ]
- Devise a home fire escape plan [ http://www.usfaparents.gov/escape/ ] and practice it with your family.
- Change your smoke detector batteries when you change your clocks.
- Learn about residential sprinkler systems [ http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/citizens/all_citizens/home_fire_prev/sprinklers/ ].
- When traveling, search this database for Hotel/Motel Fire-Safe List. [ http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/applications/hotel/ ]
Resources:
- The U.S. Fire Administration provides informative resources [ https://www.usfa.dhs.gov/applications/publications/ ] in many formats, including books, pamphlets and DVD's, *free of charge**.*
- Click here [ http://www.usfaparents.gov/materials/ ] for a fact sheet on fire safety for babies and toddlers in multiple languages.
- Click here [ http://www.firesafety.gov/kids/index.shtm ] for kid-friendly projects and information about children and fire safety.
Cathleen
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