What Are Top Fire Safety and Prevention Tips for Medford Property Owners?

10/5/2021 (Permalink)

Fire safety and prevention are critical things to plan for in your home with family members. Contact SERVPRO should your home be affected by a fire.

SERVPRO recommends safety planning in Medford during October's Annual Fire Prevention Week

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) designated the second week of October as Fire Prevention Week in 1922, becoming a national observance in 1925. Initially commemorating the Great Chicago Fire in October of 1871, today's yearly event in communities across the country like Medford stresses proactive fire safety and prevention strategies.

Why Are Fire Prevention and Safety Plans Critical for Medford Residents and Businesses?

Most Medford residents and business owners know in theory that fire can be devastating in terms of property damage, personal injury, and fatalities. Understanding that the consequences of a household or commercial blaze can happen anywhere and to anyone is vital to bringing "home" the message that families and companies must prepare for the worst now. Current research shows:

• Cooking accidents are the #1 cause of home fires.

• Fewer than half of all households have a fire escape plan.

• Nearly 3 of 5 home fire deaths occur in dwellings with absent or non-functioning smoke alarms.

• Smoke inhalation is the cause of 80 percent of fire-related deaths. 
• Roughly 60% of property owners or renters fail to test their smoke and CO alarms monthly.

What Are the Essentials of a Fire Prevention and Safety Plan?

Every home and business in Medford needs to develop a personalized safety and fire prevention plan. At a minimum, include the following:

• Install enough smoke alarms for your space, testing them monthly and replacing batteries yearly.

• The 2021 NFPA theme is "Learn the Sounds of Fire Safety!" -- teach everyone on the property what smoke alarms sound like and the next steps after they engage. 

• Learn how to operate a fire extinguisher safely.

• If fire strikes, teach all to GET OUT, STAY OUT, and CALL 9-1-1.

• Go outside right away without collecting belongings, using stairs instead of elevators.

• Plan and communicate two ways to escape from every room and area of a residence or commercial building --use the second route if smoke blocks the primary route or doors are warm to touch.

• Stay low if you encounter smoke to your exit and close doors as you move.

• If you cannot use your exit routes, stay put, closing doors and placing a wet towel under doors. 

• If trapped, open a window and wave a cloth or flashlight as a help signal.

• Establish a meeting spot outside of your home or business after evacuation.

• Ensure that all building occupants know whom to contact if people are not at the meeting spot, including calling 9-1-1.

• Perform a fire drill at least twice yearly for your property and fine-tune your plan if needed.

• Teach the concept of STOP, DROP and ROLL if clothing catches fire.

Depend on the experts at SERVPRO of Medford / Everett to mitigate, remediate, and restore fire damage to your home or business. Consider talking with us even before a fire happens to discuss prevention and safety strategies.Contact us 24/7 at (781) 395-4444 to schedule a post-blaze assessment.