Keep Your Family Safe and Happy With a Fire Escape Plan

New Study Shows Alarming Lack Of Practice In Family Fire Safety Plans Liberty Mutual Insurance and the International Association of Fire Fighters Call for Firing Up Family Escape Plans during National Fire Safety Month Your Family From Fire

PROTECT YOUR FAMILY FROM FIRE

• Respect fire and teach your children to respect it too.

• Install smoke alarms, either self-contained or as part of a system, outside

bedrooms and on EVERY LEVEL OF THE HOME.

• Test and maintain your alarms as if your life depends on it. IT DOES!

• Make sure everyone can clearly hear the sound of your smoke alarms

from their bedrooms.

• Make an escape plan with two ways out of every room and practice it with

your family.

• Especially when there are family members who cannot escape unas sisted,

consider a residential sprinkler system.

FAST FACTS ABOUT FIRE

Home Fires

One home structure fire was reported every 85 seconds in 2010.
Most fatal fires kill one or two people. In 2010, 19 home fires killed five or more people. These 19 fires resulted in 101 deaths.
In 2010, U.S. fire departments responded to 369,500 home structure fires. These fires caused 13,350 civilian injuries, 2,640 civilian deaths, and $6.9 billion in direct damage.

Escape Planning

According to an NFPA survey, only one-third of Americans have both developed and practiced a home fire escape plan.
Almost three-quarters of Americans do have an escape plan; however, less than half actually practiced it.
One-third of Americans households who made and estimate they thought they would have at least 6 minutes before a fire in their home would become life threatening. The time available is often less. And only 8% said their first thought on hearing a smoke alarm would be to get out!
Smoke Alarms
Almost two-thirds (62%) of reported home fire deaths resulted from fires in homes with no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms.
Working smoke alarms cut the risk of dying in reported home fires in half.
In fires considered large enough to activate the smoke alarm, hardwired alarms operated 92% of the time, while battery powered alarms operated only 77% of the time.

Cooking

Cooking has been the leading cause of reported home fires and home fire injuries since 1990. Unattended cooking was by far the leading cause of these fires; Two-thirds of home cooking fires began with ignition of cooking materials, including food, cooking oil, fat, or grease .
Cooking caused two of every five (42%) of reported home fires, roughly one of every seven (15% ) home fire deaths, and two of every five (37% ) home fire injuries, and 11% of direct property damage from home fires in 2010.
Ranges accounted for the 58% of home cooking fire incidents. Ovens accounted for 16%.
Children under five face a higher risk of non-fire burns associated with cooking than being burned in a cooking fire.
90% of burns associated with cooking equipment resulted from contact with hot equipment or some other non-fire source.

Heating

Heating equipment was the leading cause of reported home fires in the 1980s and has generally ranked second since them. It is the second leading cause of home fire deaths. Fires involving heating equipment peak in December, January and February, as do deaths from these fires.
The leading factor contributing to heating equipment fires was failure to clean, principally creosote from solid fueled heating equipment, primarily chimneys.
Portable or fixed space heaters, including wood stoves, were involved in one-third (32%) of home heating fires and four out of five (79%) home heating deaths.
Half of home heating fire deaths resulted from fires caused by heating equipment too close to things that can burn, such as upholstered furniture, clothing, mattresses or bedding.

Smoking Materials

In 2010, smoking materials started and estimated 17,500 home structure fires, resulting in 540 deaths, 1,320 injuries and $535 million in direct property damage. Smoking materials are the leading cause of home fire deaths.
Sleep was a factor in two of every five home smoking material fire deaths. Possible alcohol impairment was reported in one quarter of these deaths.
In recent years, Canada and the United States have required that all cigarettes sold must be “fire safe,” that is have reduced ignition strength and less likely to start fires.

Electrical

Half (49%) of home electrical fires involved electrical distribution or lighting equipment. Other leading types of equipment were washer or dryer, fan, portable or stationary space heater, air conditioning equipment, water heater and range.
In 2010, electrical failures or malfunctions were factors in an estimated 46,500 home structure fires resulting in 420 deaths, 1,520 injuries and $1.5 billion in property damage.

Candles

On average, there are 35 home candle fires reported per day.
More than one-third of these fires started in the bedroom.
More than half of all candle fires start when things that can burn are too close to the candle.
In 2010, candles caused 3% of home fires, 4% of home fire deaths, 6% of home fire injuries and 5% of direct property damage from home fires.

Home Fire Sprinklers

Automatic fire sprinkler systems cut the risk of dying in a home fire by about 83%.
Home fire sprinklers can contain and may even extinguish a fire in less time than it would take the fire department to arrive on the scene.
Sprinklers are highly effective because they react so quickly in a fire. They reduce the risk of death or injury from a fire because they dramatically reduce the heat, flames and smoke produced, allowing people time to evacuate the home.

The reality is that when fire strikes, your home could be engulfed in smoke and flames in just a few minutes.

It is important to have a home fire escape plan that prepares your family to think fast and get out quickly when the smoke alarm sounds. What if your first escape route is blocked by smoke or flames? That's why having two ways out is such a key part of your plan. This year’s theme,“Have 2 Ways Out!”, focuses on the importance of fire escape planning and practice.