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Sept. 11, 2001
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Exit Drills In The Home (E.D.I.T.H.) |
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What is a fire
escape plan?
It's your strategy for a safe exit from your home during a
fire emergency.
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What ingredients make up an effective
escape plan?
A careful escape plan begins with careful preparation,
proper placement of smoke detectors and regular
Exit
Drills
In
The
Home (E.D.I.T.H.)
practice. Hopefully you will never have a fire in your home.
However, should a fire occur, your safety and that of your
family will depend on calm, rational actions of the
occupants. Exit drills in the home and a carefully designed
escape plan can be the key to a safe escape.
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How do I put together a fire escape
plan?
Advanced planning will ensure that you are ready for any
fire emergency and can provide you and your loved ones with
peace of mind. To design your own fire escape plan, sketch
the floor plan of your home on a piece of paper. Indicate on
the plan all doors, windows and other avenues of escape from
each room in your home. Draw arrows to indicate the normal
exits which would be your primary escape route. With an
alternate color, draw arrows to indicate a secondary exit
from each room in the home.
Choose a location outside the home where family members
should meet once they have safely escaped. A neighbor's
front yard or sidewalk may be an ideal meeting place.
Call 911 to
report the fire.
If you need help in designing your plan or if you would like
to have your plan reviewed, contact your local fire
department for assistance. After completion of the floor
plan, sit down with your family to to discuss these
important points with them:
- Location of smoke detectors.
The number of detectors you need, and their location,
depends upon the layout of your home. There should be a
smoke detector located near each of the sleeping areas.
It is also a good idea to have at least one detector on
each level of your home.
- Reporting a Fire.
Everyone should know the location of telephones in the
home and where to find a telephone outside of the home.
It is very important that children also know the
911
phone number
in order to report a fire or other emergency incidents
to authorities.
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Now that we have our plan, what's
next?
Your fire escape plan may look great on paper, but does it
really work? Regular exit drills in the home will allow you
to test the plan and make adjustments as may be needed. When
practicing your exit drills in the home, remember to use
alternate escape routes as well. Children should be closely
supervised during drills in the home and no one should take
unnecessary chances.
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One of our family members has special
needs. How do we best include them in the plan?
Some people face greater risks during a fire emergency as
they may have special needs. This would include individuals
who are mentally or physically handicapped. Persons with
special needs should sleep in a bedroom near someone who can
help in the event of an emergency. A physically handicapped
person may require a sleeping area on the ground floor.
Designing a special escape plan will depend on the abilities
of the person.
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Exit Drills In The Home
can help people to prepare for an emergency. Most home fires
begin between the hours of midnight and 6:00 a.m. This is a
time when most people are least prepared. In the middle of
the night, fire can be a disaster if you and your family are
not familiar with how to escape during an emergency.
So, to protect yourself and your family, remember these
tips:
- Prepare a fire escape plan.
- Install and maintain smoke detectors.
- Practice
Exit
Drills
In
The
Home regularly.
- Examine your home for fire hazards and take steps to
prevent a fire before it occurs.
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Life Safety page
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