Facts

• Nearly 4000 Americans die each year in house fires and over 2000 are severely injured.

• In only 3 1/2 minutes, the heat from a house fire can reach over 1100 degrees Fahrenheit.

• About 80% of all civilian deaths from fire occur in the home.

• In rooms that are not even on fire the temperature can reach over 300 degrees; this is hot enough to melt plastic and kill the people in those rooms.

• Adults 65 and older are more than twice as likely to die in fires as the overall population.

• The leading cause of fire deaths is careless smoking.

• Having a working smoke detector more than doubles one’s chances of surviving a fire.

• In 2005, 106 firefighters died in the line of duty in the United States.

8 things you must teach your children

• What a smoke alarm sounds like: Some children run and hide when an alarm sounds a house-fire warning. Making and practicing a house fire escape plan helps them respond appropriately to the alarm.

• What a firefighter looks like at a fire: Acquaint your children with the equipment a firefighter may be wearing and/or carrying. Air masks, the heavy breathing sounds they produce, and axes can be frightening to children who may hide instead of responding to their calls.

• Escape routes: Always teach children two ways out of every room (i.e., window and door).

• Stay low during escape: Crawl as close to the floor as possible under smoke to a safe exit.

• Test the safety of their exit route: Use the back of the hand to test if a closed door is hot. If it is hot, use another way out.

• Where to meet after escape: Everyone must meet at a previously designated meeting place outside the home so that firefighters know that all persons are out of the house.

• How to call for help: Call 911 from a neighbor’s home.

• Stay out: Never go back inside a burning home to get anything such as toys, clothes or pets.