What Kids Need To Know About House Fires

2/4/2022 (Permalink)

Parents should teach kids safety measures in case of a home fire.

What Every Child Should Know About House Fires

Parents should teach kids safety measures in case of a home fire. Here are several steps that can prepare children to safely evacuate a burning structure.

What Fire and Smoke Alarms Mean

Fire and smoke alarms make loud sounds that are intended to get the attention of the occupants of a residence and wake anyone who may be sleeping when a fire starts. Familiarize kids with these noises and what they mean by testing alarms during fire drills. These drills should cover several fire escape basics:

• Rolling out of bed
• Pursuing evacuation routes
• Exiting the house

It is a good idea to do home fire drills several times a year to teach kids safety measures. Develop a plan to increase family fire safety awareness.

How To Evacuate

A fire safety strategy should include primary and secondary evacuation routes. Work with a simple floorplan or play a game in which kids find the fastest ways out of a house from each room. Determine which evacuation routes are best given the age and physical condition of all family members.

Where To Go

Another important part of a fire escape plan is identifying a safe place to meet after evacuating. Parents should make sure that a meetup location satisfies several criteria:

• Far enough away from a burning structure
• Known to all family members
• Not located downwind from smoke

Kids should know to go to this location and wait for other family members or help to arrive. Make reaching this location a part of regular fire drills.

Parents may want to practice evacuation maneuvers such as bed rolls, fire crawls, and door temperature tests during fire drills or turn preparedness practice into games. Teaching kids safety measures is an important part of a family fire safety plan. If fire damages your home in Kennewick, WA, rely on the expertise of mitigation and restoration specialists.