Fire Safety at Home
Smoke Alarm Safety Tips

According to the National Safety Council, the number of fire-related deaths has decreased by more than half since 1977. Smoke alarms play an important role in protecting your home—and everyone in it—by detecting fires early, so you can exit your home safely. Follow these tips for proper smoke alarm use:

Every Level, Every Room
Every bedroom should have a smoke alarm installed. Be sure to install an alarm on every level of the home, too.

Sync Up Smoke Alarms
Make sure all your smoke alarms are interconnected, so that when one goes off, the sound can be heard from all alarms. 

Bigger Homes Need More Alarms
If you have a large home, install extra alarms, so that each area of the home has a working alarm.

Don’t Forget to Test
Once a month, press the “test” button on your smoke alarms to ensure the alarms are working.

Take Alarms Seriously
If your smoke alarm goes off, make sure everyone in your home gets outside safely.

Stay Up to Date
Every 10 years, replace all the smoke alarms in your home.

Shut the Doors
Closing doors may slow the spread of smoke, heat and fire, so keep doors in bedrooms closed while sleeping.

Fire Safety at Work
Best Practices for Kaufman County Businesses

A fire at your place of business can cause serious damage. Keep your employees, equipment and business safe by having a fire safety plan, and sharing it with your team. Here are a few fir safety best practices for your business:

Create an Evacuation Strategy.
Make sure exits are clearly marked, and always use stairs rather than elevators. Include plans to evacuate employees with disabilities, providing assistance as needed. Post your plan where it can be clearly seen by employees, such as in the break room.

Conduct Company Fire Drills.
Fire drills are helpful in ensuring your evacuation plan works, and your employees know what to do in the event of an actual fire. Set a timer to see how long it takes everyone to evacuate. If the drill is not timely, adjust your evacuation strategy.

Install a sprinkler system and fire safety equipment, including smoke alarms and fire extinguishers.
Test your smoke alarms and fire extinguishers on a monthly basis, and replace every ten years. Keep all fire safety equipment in good working order.

Inspect your business to identify possible fire risks, and eliminate them.
Frayed cords and overloaded outlets are notorious for starting office fires. Electrical equipment and wiring should also be inspected for safety. Ask employees to report any fire hazards they observe.

How to Inspect Fire Extinguishers

Fire extinguishers work—as long as they are in good working order. At least once a month, inspect your fire extinguishers by following these simple tips:

Make sure it’s accessible.
Ensure your extinguisher is not blocked by desks, equipment, or anything that would make it difficult to see or access in an emergency situation.

Check the pin and tamper seal.
Make sure these items are intact.

Check for damage.
Ensure there are no dents, leaks, rust, chemical deposits, or other signs of damage. If you do see corrosive chemicals or oil on the extinguisher, wipe them off.

Make sure the pressure is correct.
If your extinguisher has a gauge, the needle should be in the “green zone,” indicating pressure is neither too high or low.

Check the nozzle.
Make sure nothing is blocking the nozzle or any other working parts of the extinguisher.

Shake, if recommended.
Dry chemical extinguishers should be shaken once a month to prevent settling, if recommended by the manufacturer.

Don’t forget to recharge!
If you ever use your extinguisher, be sure to recharge it immediately—even if you only used it a little.

Don’t be a Fire Starter.
Top 10 Fire Prevention Tips

The top five causes of fires in homes are: cooking, heating, electrical fire hazards, smoking, and candles. Based on these leading fire-starters, here are our top fire prevention tips:

Cook with caution.
Don’t cook when you’re sleepy, or after consuming alcohol. Stay alert, and check the food you’re cooking often to make sure it isn’t burning. If you’re frying, boiling, grilling or broiling, don’t leave the kitchen. If you must leave the kitchen, turn off the stove or oven. If you’re baking, roasting or simmering, it’s OK to leave the kitchen briefly, but stay home and set timers to remind you that you’re cooking.

Put out small fires quickly, and leave if you have any doubt.
To smother flames on the stovetop, place a lid on the pan and turn off the burner. For a fire in the oven, turn off the oven and keep the oven door closed. If you’re concerned you can’t quickly put out the fire, the safest thing to do is leave your home and call 9-1-1.

Keep flammable items far from heaters.
Paper, clothing, rugs, bedding, drapes—anything flammable—should be kept at least three feet away from space heaters, stoves, or fireplaces. Space heaters should be placed on hard, level surfaces, such as tile floors, and not on rugs or carpets. Look for models that shut off automatically if tipped over.

Never leave a space heater or fireplace unattended.
Put out fires and turn off space heaters before leaving your home.

Have chimneys, fireplaces and furnaces inspected and cleaned annually.

Use alternatives to candles.

Don’t allow smoking inside your home.

Keep matches and lighters out of children’s reach.

Ensure smoke alarms and fire extinguishers are in good working order, and replace batteries annually.

Have an “evacuation plan” to leave your home quickly in case of fire.