Parent and Baby

A fire outbreak in your home can be a very traumatic as well as scary to your children. Their safety must be your top concern and you and your family must be prepared for it. The following are fire safety tips and guide for your home.

Fire safety preventive measures

1. Never leave your children in the kitchen alone and unsupervised.
2. Don’t place your children’s favorite treats like cookies near the stove and on top shelves.
3. Keep matches, lighters and other flammable substances away from the reach of your children.
4. To avoid pans being knocked over, always keep their handles facing the center of the stove.
5. Don’t let your kids play with the electrical cords and sockets.
6. Make sure that the smoke and fire alarm is working and the batteries are replaced every now and then.
7. Don’t allow your children to start a fire in a fireplace without your close supervision.
8. Make sure that every member of your family knows where the fire extinguisher is located and knows how to operate it.
9. Place a copy of all emergency telephone numbers beside your telephone.
10. It is recommended that you and your family members will conduct a fire drill so that everyone in the family will know what to do and where to go in case of fire.

Fire safety during an actual fire break out

1. Do not panic.
2. Follow your pre-arranged plan in your fire drill to escape from your burning house.
3. If a family member is to wake up and find that a fire had broken out, start yelling “fire” so that everyone will know.
4. Don’t hide under the bed or in the closet. This will only trap you and will make rescue difficult.
5. Before opening the door, it is very important to check it. Test the top with the back of your palm and only open it, if  it is cool.
6. If you can’t exit through the door, take the window.
7. Never stop to take anything with you. It will only take precious time to escape from the fire.
8. If you can’t go out the door and the room is filling with smoke, use a wet towel to cover the space at the bottom of the door.
9. If the room fills with smoke, keep close to the floor where you can breathe more easily.
10. If your clothes will catch fire, don’t run. Roll over on the floor or ground to extinguish the flames.
11. Once you are out of the house, check or meet with your other family members so that they will know that you are ok.
12. Never go back into your house while it is still on fire.

Nothing ranks first over the safety of your children, so it will be wise to have a plan in case of fire.