National Fire Prevention Week wraps up Saturday, and the local fire departments along with the Iowa Department of Public Safety remind everyone there is still time to develop your family escape plans and check smoke detectors. The theme this year of “Every Second Counts; Plan Two Ways Out!” has everyone thinking of the worst-case scenario. Imagine, it’s 2 a.m. and you and your family are sound asleep. You are jolted awake by the sound of the smoke alarm and you smell smoke. What do you do? If you don’t have a plan and you falter, even for a few minutes, it could be the difference between life and death. The Iowa Department of Public Safety says you have as little as one to two minutes to escape a home fire safely from the time smoke is detected, and that is why it is critical to have an escape plan in place for every member of the family. It also needs to be practiced over and over again. “Developing and practicing a home escape plan is like building muscle memory,” says Dan Wood, Iowa State Fire Marshal. “That pre-planning is what everyone will draw upon to snap into action and escape as quickly as possible in the event of a fire.” The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and the Iowa State Fire Marshal offer tips and recommendation for building and practicing your plans, and these can be found with this story on our website.
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- Draw a map of your home with all members of your household, marking two exits from each room and a path to the outside from each exit.
- Practice your home fire drill twice a year. Conduct one at night and one during the day with everyone in your home, and practice using different ways out.
- Teach children how to escape on their own in case you can’t help them.
- Make sure the number of your home is clearly marked and easy for the fire department to find.
- Close doors behind you as you leave — this may slow the spread of smoke, heat, and fire.
- Once you get outside, stay outside. Never go back inside a burning building.
To learn more about this year’s Fire Prevention Week campaign, “Every Second Counts: Plan 2 Ways Out” and home escape planning, visit firepreventionweek.org.