Practice, Practice, Practice!
- Hold a family fire drill during the day, while everyone is awake and another one at night while children are asleep to see how they will respond.
- Following the drill, make adjustments to the plan.
- Does someone in the family, who may be too young or physically impaired, need assistance?
- An adult can go to their room and help that person to an alternate escape route.
- If a child sleeps through an alarm they may need to be awakened by an adult.
- Infants will need to be carried to safety.
Make an Escape Plan
- Locate all doors, windows, halls, stairs, and fire escapes that can be used to get outside.
- Using arrows, show two ways out of every room, especially bedrooms.
- Make sure that each family member can open door locks and window latches.
- Check to see if all windows that are part of the escape plan open easily and have not been painted shut.
- If your home has security bars or child window guards, they should have a quick-release feature that can be operated from the inside.
- Keep exits and paths clear of obstacles such as furniture, newspapers, toys, etc.
- Plan around your abilities. If you wear eyeglasses or hearing aids – keep them at your bedside along with a flashlight.
- When the smoke alarm sounds, remember to: Roll out of bed; onto the floor, and stay low beneath smoke, crawl to the door. Check the door for heat with the back of the hand. If cool, open the door slowly. If the coast is clear, crawl to escape. Signal others by calling/banging.
- Do not open a hot door. Place a towel or blanket under the door to keep smoke out.
Crawl to the window. Turn on a light, and open the window. If you can safely reach the
ground, exit the window. Otherwise, shout and signal for help. Don’t jump. A firefighter’s first priority is to rescue people.
