Practicing Fire safety will keep you and your family prepared and will reduce the risk of having a fire start and in turn will reduce the risk of injury or death. Residential fires are often preventable but when they do occur, being prepared is your best chance. Kitchen fires are the leading cause of fires in residential structures. Today’s house fires burn hotter and faster due to modern furnishings and the materials used to make them. They also produce a thicker and more toxic smoke than fires in years past. You have less than 3 minutes to escape from the time a fire sets of smoke alarms.
Children and seniors are most at risk of losing their life in a fire. With that said, fire does not discriminate. Everyone needs to know how to stay safe and practice fire safety. So, what can you do?
First off, have a plan! You and your family should have an escape plan including a meeting place outside in the event of a fire. Everyone should practice getting out and know the closest way out along with alternatives. Remember to get low and crawl below the smoke. And don’t forget to go over how to get us there with children! 9-1-1.
Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarms Save Lives! We have them for free!
Deaths in residential homes are often attributed to not having working smoke alarms. Do you have smoke alarms in your home? Do you have enough? Do you replace your smoke alarm batteries semi-yearly? Smoke alarms should be in and outside of every sleeping room. In addition there should be at least one alarm on every level in the home regardless if there are bedrooms or not. Batteries should be replaced twice a year. Try doing that as Daylight Savings starts and ends each year. That way you’ll always know you have fresh batteries in your smoke detectors.
Practice safety when using heat sources including kitchen appliances, fire places, grills, and space heaters.
Always keep and eye on your food as it cooks. In addition, be sure and follow manufacturers recommendations for maintenance on electrical or other powered appliances or tools to prevent risk of electrical shorts and fires.
Fire Inspections:
The Yadkin County Fire Marshall’s Office and County Building Inspectors are tasked with enforcing required building codes and completing plan reviews. For businesses in Yadkin County, the Fire Marshall and Building Inspectors perform fire inspections and code enforcement at these occupancies based on the occupancy classification. Businesses should be in compliance with state building code as well as any federal and/or local government regulations and are subject to fines determined by the county if compliance is not met.
Our department performs and maintains pre-fire plans for all businesses in our district which help provide crutial building information in the event of an emergency. We update these records on an annual basis and are separate from the County Inspections.
We also perform courtesy inspections for residential dwellings upon occupant request to check for safety hazards and can keep record of special information regarding a home such as special needs or disabled occupants living within the home.
