House fires are almost always unexpected. Because they do not give much of a warning, you must react immediately if a fire breaks out in your home. This makes it very important to create a fire escape plan with your family and have fire drills to make sure everyone knows what to do in case of a fire. Once a fire starts, there is precious little time to evacuate safely and you will not be able to coordinate an evacuation. Make sure you cover the following when planning a fire evacuation and practice the plan with home fire drills.
Determine Escape Route
Map out an escape route from every area of the home. Ideally, you should come up with two escape routes from each room in case one route is blocked. Windows can also be used to escape so you must be able to open all your windows quickly from the inside. Every member of your family should be familiar with the escape routes so they know where to go if a fire occurs.
Avoid Fire and Smoke
When evacuating during a fire, your family must understand the importance of staying low to avoid the smoke. Breathing in smoke can have disastrous consequences, crawling low will help you avoid it. You must also stress the importance of checking rooms for fire and smoke before entering them. A good way to tell is to feel the door for heat and look for smoke coming out from under the door.
Determine a Meeting Place
House fires are chaotic and each member of your family may take a separate evacuation route. Establishing a meeting place will give your family a place to come together and make sure everyone got out safely. No one should ever go back into the home once they have escaped and you must alert the 911 operator if someone is still inside.
Determine an Emergency Contact
Your family should have one emergency contact, like an extended family member or a close friend, that everyone can call to check in. If any family members are not at home when the fire breaks out, they can call the emergency contact to check on everyone.
Have Home Fire Drills
It’s one thing to form an evacuation plan on paper, and quite another to practice the plan. Make sure to practice the plan often so your family members know exactly what to do if a fire breaks out in your home.
Fire Safety – Home Fire Drill – ServiceMaster Video
Does your family have a home fire drill plan in case of an emergency? If not, use these video tips and practice them with your family occasionally. Being prepared for the unexpected is the best way to stay safe if a fire should strike.
Fire Damage Restoration Services from ServiceMaster NCR
In the event of a house fire, the safety of you and your family is most important and forming and practicing a clear fire escape plan gives your family the best chance to escape a fire unharmed. Once you have escaped and made it safely to your designated meeting place, call 911 to put out the fire and then call ServiceMaster NCR when it is time to begin the restoration. We provide complete fire and smoke damage restoration services in Alexandria, VA and the Washington, DC area to get your home or business back to its pre-fire condition.
