Fire is the third leading cause of accidental death in American homes. It kills more people than all other natural disasters combined.
Waking up to smoke and flames in the middle of the night is a nightmare no family wants to experience. Unfortunately, it is one of the issues faced by humans with no solution to eliminate the possibility of its occurrence.
Even though the older adult population is at the greatest relative risk of dying in a fire, children are equally prone to the risk.
It is estimated that fires claim about 500 children ages 14 and under yearly. This is about 5 percent of the total fire deaths recorded yearly. While the rate of kids’ death from fire has been dwindling over the years, it remains vital to educate children on fire safety tips.
You might do everything right at home to prevent your house from catching fire, while they may face a fire incident in school.
However, when teaching children about fire safety, this must be done without causing unnecessary fear or anxiety. This is paramount because they need to be calm to efficiently handle themselves when they are a victim of a fire incident.
Educate them about smoke detectors
Teach your kids about smoke detectors, how they sound, and their functions. This will help them get acquainted with the sound of the smoke detector and understand it indicates fire.
Ensure the batteries are changed regularly to avoid the alarm going off due to low battery. Encourage your children to be involved in its maintenance such as reminding you about the need to change the battery when due.
Smoke detectors with low batteries may continually go off which may get them confused and misinterpret false alarms for actual danger.
Teach them about firefighters
The sight of a firefighter can be scary to kids. Show them pictures of firefighters and educate them about what they do.
You may also take them to your local fire department where they can engage with firefighters and learn more fire safety tips.
Teach your kids about the different firefighter awards presented to this hero and why they are an integral part of the community.
Plan and rehearse the use of escape routes
Identify two ways to get out of every room in your home that can be used as escape routes in case of fire. These escape routes are usually the windows and doors.
If there is any section of the home without a window, teach them how to get to the available escape route. Simulate a fire situation and watch them escape, correct them, and rehearse until they can effortlessly locate and use the escape routes.
Also, create a meeting point outside the home where every household member goes in case of a fire.
Ensure your kids can access the area and wait for you. This is essential as kids are fond of hiding when scared. Train them not to hide inside when they see a fire, but instead go outside.
Show them how to dial emergency numbers
Children can learn how to dial emergency numbers from a young age potentially saving lives when it is urgently needed.
Show them how to call 911 for help in the event of a fire. However, let them understand the number should only be dialed in case of an emergency and not for fun. Let them know dialing the number for fun is a crime.
Walk your kids through how to dial the emergency numbers from any available phone available. If your phone has a security code or pattern, make sure it is simple and your children can easily remember it.
However, most phones are now designed with emergency buttons that can be used without the need to unlock the phone.
Create games and activities to rehearse fire safety tips
Children love games. Leverage this to train them about fire safety tips. Create games that simulate fire incidents with rewards for the right response.
Make the training fun such as taking them to a store and offering prizes for any of them who can first locate the EXIT signs.
Let them look, touch, and experience a smoke detector. Create a counting game to identify the total number of smoke detectors in your home or a building.
Candid Mama
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