Escape Drills and Smoke Detector Information
Smoke Detectors
Smoke detectors provide the critical early warning during a fire that helps you and your family escape to safety. It could be a matter of life or death, so take a moment monthly to maintain and test your smoke detectors. While cleaning and maintaining your smoke detectors, take a moment to review their locations. The National Fire Protection Association recommends having smoke detectors outside of every sleeping area and on every level.
Smoke Detectors need to be dusted and cleaned to ensure adequate air flow to the unit. Do not attempt to take the smoke detector apart to clean it. Next, press the test button. This tests the alarm circuitry to show that your smoke detector is capable of sounding the alarm. This is also a good time to practice your escape plan. Finally, check when the batteries were last replaced in your alarm. If they are over 6 months old, it is recommended they be replaced. We recommend replacing your batteries when Daylight Saving Time begins and ends in April and October.
If your smoke detectors are over 10 years old, it is time to replace them. Over time, smoke detectors become less sensitive, and after 10 years, a smoke detector has a 30% probability of failure. New smoke detectors cost less than $10 dollars, and such a small investment may save you or your family's life.
Escape Drills
While smoke detectors provide an early-warning element, having a written escape plan and escape drills is the 2nd vital part of any home safety plan. A fire is a fast moving and chaotic event. Having a written and practiced escape plan could mean the difference between escaping and not escaping. The confidence of knowing your escape routes also enables you to be aware of your options for a quicker and safer escape.
To develop an effective escape plan:
- Discuss the necessity of escape drills with everyone in the house.
- Draw a simple floor plan of your house, identifying at least 2 exits out of every room.
- Identify a meeting place outside the house and place it on the drawing also.
- Walk through the escape plan, making sure that the escape routes are clear and functional, and that everyone can exit the house using the exits identified.
- Make sure to review and practice your plan regularly.
While formulating your escape plan, discuss these points with your family members:
- Sleep with your door closed: This will help slow the spread of smoke and flames in the event of a fire.
- Check doors for heat: If there is a fire in your home, check all doors for heat with the back of your hand prior to opening them. Do not open the door if you feel any heat, the fire may be right outside the door.
- Never ignore a smoke alarm: If you hear a smoke alarm sounding, don't waste any time trying to investigate the source. Get out of the house immediately and call 911 from a cell phone or neighbor's house.
- Crawl low in smoke: If you are in a fire, crawl low to get out. Smoke and heat rise, leaving cooler air down by the floor. Crawling low will help you breathe easier. If you are awakened by a smoke alarm, roll out of bed to the floor. Sitting up in bed may put your head directly into the smoke and heat, causing burns or lung damage.
- Go directly outside: Do not stop to take any personal belongings. In a fire, you need to get outside as fast as possible. Stopping to collect a wallet or pictures may cost you your life. Also, do not attempt to rescue pets. Many times a pet will be outside the home before you even realize it.
- Know STOP, DROP, and ROLL: If your clothes happen to catch fire, do not run. Running will only feed the fire more oxygen and make it burn faster. Stop where you are, drop to the ground, cover your face with your hands to protect it, and roll on the ground to extinguish the flames.
- Know when to call 911: Discuss with children how and when to call 911. Make sure they know not to hang up, and to tell the dispatcher on the other end their name, address, phone number and why they are calling. Make sure they know that 911 is only used for emergencies.
Information on this page was, in part, collected from the NFPA, USFA, and the CDC