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2018-01-23
By: Denise Koslowsky
Last week we posted a short blog about the increase in home fire fatalities this year. In case you missed it, the statistics showed that we’ve had a 60% increase in fatalities during the first 18 days of 2018 when compared to the first 18 days of 2017. We focused our attention on our recommendation to install a Central Station Fire and Burglar Alarm and how it can reduce your risk of total home loss and save lives. You can read the full article here.
We wanted to come back this week to the topic of home fires once more in order to share a very important safety precaution you can take today that will:
• Save lives
• Prevent a home fire from spreading
• Will cost you nothing.
Here it is… Close and Contain.
What we mean is that if you find yourself in a structure that is on fire, when you leave, be sure to Close and Contain by closing the door behind you in order to contain the fire. That’s it! It seems so simple but it truly can save your life. The reason this works is that a closed door limits the fire’s oxygen supply and can help to contain the fire. The closed door slows down or stops the spread of flames, reduces the temperature and reduces the emission of deadly Carbon Monoxide.
Underwriters Laboratories, the Safety and Consulting Company, takes this a step further and recommends that you Close Before You Doze. They request that before you lay down each night to sleep, you close the door to your bedroom. As stated above, this will reduce the spread of flames, reduce the temperature in the room and decrease the amount of Carbon Monoxide. Good Morning America did a story about this at the end of last year that beautifully illustrates this point so please take 3 minutes or so and watch.
Another important factor is that, modern materials found in items such as curtains, toys, or cushion filling often release toxic fumes as they burn. It is the fumes released as these items burn that cause the death of more people as they sleep than the flames of the fire itself.
So please, create a new habit…close your bedroom doors at night and teach your children that in a fire-related emergency that closing the door behind them can save lives!
Educating each client we serve is important to us at Advocate Brokerage. If you have questions or need help with fire safety resources, please get in touch with us at 914-723-7100.
Don’t forget to Close and Contain, it can save lives!
