User`s guide

35
Fire Safety and Evacuation
Residential fire is a leading cause of accidental death. Most fire related
deaths occur at night when occupants suffocate in their sleep from smoke
and toxic gases, rather than from burns. To help reduce this risk, the
following program should be implemented.
1. Minimize fire hazards. Smoking in bed,
cleaning with flammable liquids such as
gasoline, leaving children home alone,
and using unsafe holiday decorations are
some of the common causes of
household fire.
2. Install a fire alarm system. The primary purpose of this system is to
protect lives by giving the earliest possible warning of danger.
3. A smoke detector (indicated in the figure by an inverted “s” in a
circle) should be provided to protect each sleeping area in a home.
4. Practice an escape plan. Because there may be very little time
between detection of a fire and the time it becomes deadly, it is
important that every member of the family understand how to
quickly evacuate according to the plan.
Plan both primary and alternate escape routes.
Since stairwells and hallways may be blocked
during a fire, exiting through a bedroom
window must be a part of the escape plan. If
the sleeping area is above the ground floor,
install a means of safely descending outside the
building if one does not already exist.
As a part of this plan, all family
members should arrange to meet at a
location away from the house (such as
a neighbor’s house) so you know that
everyone is accounted for.
If it is determined that the alarm was accidentally sounded, the bell should
be silenced, the detectors reset, and your security company notified
immediately that there is no emergency situation.