Materials in today’s homes burn faster than ever — you may have as little as two minutes from the time the smoke alarm sounds to get out of your home. While we may never expect to experience a fire in our homes, it’s important to be prepared and take necessary steps to prevent fires from happening. The National Fire Prevention Association has these tips to help you and your family stay safe:
Watch your cooking. Stay in the kitchen when you are frying, grilling, or broiling food. If you must leave, even for a short time, turn off the stove.
Give space heaters space. Keep fixed and portable space heaters at least three feet from anything that can burn. Turn off heaters when you leave the room or go to sleep.
Keep matches and lighters out of reach. Keep matches and lighters up high, out of the reach of children, preferably in a cabinet with a child lock.
Inspect electrical cords. Replace cords that are cracked, damaged, have broken plugs, or have loose connections.
Be careful when using candles. Keep candles at least one foot from anything that can burn. Blow out candles when you leave the room or go to sleep.
Install smoke sensors. Install smoke sensors on every level of your home, inside bedrooms and outside sleeping areas. Interconnect smoke sensors throughout the home so when one sounds, they all sound. Test your smoke sensors monthly.
Keep doors closed. A closed door may slow the spread of smoke, heat, and fire. Sleep with bedroom doors closed whenever possible.
Make an escape plan. Know at least two ways out of every room, if possible. Have an outside meeting place and practice your plan at night.
Heartland Security offers monitored smoke sensors that can be added to your home security system. Monitored smoke sensors alert our monitoring center and you any time a sensor is triggered, 24/7/365. Dispatchers will contact you and the proper authorities so even if you aren’t home, help can be on its way. Call us at 888-264-6380 to get your free quote.