With the danger of electrical fires ever present, taking precautions is fundamental to using electricity wisely. Plug in only as many appliances as an outlet can support directly. Do not use un-fused, multi-plug adapters or power strips as the electrical circuit may not be able to support the demand for that amount of current.

Use extension cords only for temporary portable equipment, not in place of your home¹s permanent wiring. Equipment supplied with electricity by an extension cord must have a lower amperage rating than that of the extension cord. Using an extension cord for a portable heater, which requires a lot of amperage, could cause the extension cord to overheat at the cord end and outlet and start a fire.

Replace or have repaired by an electrician any frayed, split, cracked or otherwise damaged cords. Damaged cords can cause a short in the circuit, heat up, and start a fire. Wrapping electrical tape around a damaged cord may not repair it.

When removing an electrical cord from an outlet, grasp on the plug portion instead of the cord. Do not lay cords under rugs, over nails or hooks, or through doorways or windows where they may get smashed, cut or split and cause a fire or shock hazard.

If you have small children in your home, cover unused electrical outlets with plastic safety caps.

Use bulbs that match the recommended wattage for that appliance or light fixture. Bulbs with wattages in excess of what is recommended may give off enough heat to start a fire.

If outlets or switch boxes are cracked or discolored, turn the circuit off and have them checked by an electrician. They may need to be replaced.

Keep heat-generating appliances and light bulbs away from anything flammable. Allow sufficient space around stereos, televisions and computers to prevent over-heating.

Purchase appliances and cords with the UL (Underwriters Laboratories) or FM (Factory Mutual) label indicating they have been tested for safety.

Consider having additional circuits and outlets added to your home by an electrician, especially if you are using extension cords and power strips.

The price tag will not be near what an electrical fire would cost in money and lives.

Article Credits: Fire Marshal Alan Perkins, CFPS, is a 32-year veteran of the fire service. A Certified Fire Protection Specialist through the National Fire Protection Association and a member of several similar safety organizations. Perkins is the Fire Marshal for the Washington Township Fire Department, Dublin, Ohio. For more information, contact: Leslie Dybiec, Public Information Officer Phone: (614) 652-3928 Fax: (614) 766-2507 or ldybiec@wtwp.com.

Live Safe Foundation is an Ohio based non-profit organization (501c3), and leading grassroots movement, devoted to making and fire and life safety education, awareness initiatives and life saving tools available on a broad basis to communities, campuses, and institutions in an effort to reduce national fire fatalities and fire losses. Live Safe aims to help finance fire safety education where means are otherwise unavailable. Live Safe is developing and sponsoring programs to help groups find the resources needed to advance individual and community fire safety.

Many fire departments offer free safety information, so in addition to reviewing the ideas below, ask about ways you can keep your family safe. Then set aside a night to have fun and discuss safety.

Smoke detector check: If you don’t have smokd detectors, purchase them. If you do, determine whether the batteries are working. Make sure that everyone knows where the smoke detectors are located and how they sound.

Carbon Monoxide detectors are recommended for homes with gas-burning appliances. Make sure detectors work and your family knows how they sound.

Home escape plan. Draw a diagram of your home. Talk about reasons you would need to leave your house, such as a fire or gas leak. Have children draw all the ways to safely exit the house.

Outside location. Decide on a meeting place that is a safe distance from your house. Then practice exiting the house from different locations and meeting there.

Electrical problems. Take your family on a home tour. Look for overloaded electrical outlets and cords that run under rugs or show signs of wear. Contact a certified electrician if you locate wiring problems.

Combustible storage. Ensure that combustible material is not stored within three feet of any flame-producting appliance.

Inside location. Talk about reasons – such as an approaching tornado – you would need to find a safe place inside your house. Store blankets and bottle water there. Let family members draw routes on the home diagram from each room and practice meeting at this safe place.

Teach your family and Test your knowledge: Consider providing a Residential Home Fire Safety Course to your family. The Flashpoint curriculum will teach you what to do, what to prevent and what to avoid, as well as:

• Increase families’ fire safety awareness through an effective web-based training program.
• Teach parents, children, and other occupants of residential dwellings how to prevent fires and fire related injuries, and create a fire safe environment.
• Enable families and other occupants to effectively create and use a fire plan.
• Teach individuals to react correctly when a fire occurs.
• Enable proficiency in inspecting available fire safety equipment.
• End results: survival.

Go to www.nifast.org to learn more.

Conclude your family safety night by enjoying a treat to celebrate that you are all together and safe.

The article contains information provided by Ted Collas of Thriving Family Magazine (July/August 2010 edition).

Live Safe Foundation is an Ohio based non-profit organization (501c3), and leading grassroots movement, devoted to making and fire and life safety education, awareness initiatives and life saving tools available on a broad basis to communities, campuses, and institutions in an effort to reduce national fire fatalities and fire losses. Live Safe aims to help finance fire safety education where means are otherwise unavailable. Live Safe is developing and sponsoring programs to help groups find the resources needed to advance individual and community fire safety.

• Routinely check your electrical appliances and wiring for cracked wires. Replace worn, old or damaged appliance cords immediately.
• Use extension cords only temporarily and don’t overload them by attaching more electrical appliances to them than they are designed to handle.
• Pinching cords against walls or furniture or running them under carpets or across doorways can cause a fire.
• Place lamps on level surfaces, away from things that can burn and use bulbs that match the lamp’s recommended wattage.
• Purchase only electrical appliances that have the label of a recognized testing laboratory such as Underwriters Laboratories (UL), indicating it has met safety standards.
• Keep children from playing with or around electrical appliances such as space heaters, irons, and hair dryers. Homes with young children should have tamper-resistant electrical receptacles.
• Keep clothes, curtains, and other similar combustible items at least three feet from all heaters. Keep lamps, light fixtures, and light bulbs away from anything that can burn, including lamp shades, furniture, bedding, clothing, and flammable or combustible liquids.
• Check your electrical tools regularly for signs of wear. Replace any tool if it causes even small electrical shocks, overheats, shorts, or gives off smoke or sparks.

If an electrical appliance catches fire, first try unplugging it or shutting the electricity off at the fuse or circuit breaker panel. If you cannot shut off the electricity, use a portable extinguisher with the rating of “C” on it, indicating it is approved for use on electrical fires. If you do not have a fire extinguisher, or the fire is too large to fight (larger than a household waste basket), leave the house and call the fire department. Do not use water on the fire as it conducts electricity and you could be shocked.

To learn more about extinguishers and get first-hand experience using one on a real fire, take advantage of one of our group training classes, offered by appointment.  Request a date for your group by completing the online program request form at www.wtwp.com.

Article Credits: Fire Marshal Alan Perkins, CFPS, is a 32-year veteran of the fire service. A Certified Fire Protection Specialist through the National Fire Protection Association and a member of several similar safety organizations. Perkins is the Fire Marshal for the Washington Township Fire Department, Dublin, Ohio. For more information, contact: Leslie Dybiec, Public Information Officer Phone: (614) 652-3928 Fax: (614) 766-2507 or ldybiec@wtwp.com.

Live Safe Foundation is an Ohio based non-profit organization (501c3), and leading grassroots movement, devoted to making and fire and life safety education, awareness initiatives and life saving tools available on a broad basis to communities, campuses, and institutions in an effort to reduce national fire fatalities and fire losses. Live Safe aims to help finance fire safety education where means are otherwise unavailable. Live Safe is developing and sponsoring programs to help groups find the resources needed to advance individual and community fire safety.

If you are outdoors and see lightning, move indoors to a completely enclosed building or into a hard-topped vehicle and close the windows. Avoid being in or near high places and open fields, isolated trees, unprotected gazebos, car ports, pavilions, tents, shelters, baseball dugouts, flagpoles, light poles, metal or wood bleachers, metal fences, and water. Don’t hold on to metal items such as golf clubs, umbrellas or tools.

To determine how far a thunderstorm is from you, use the 30-30 Rule. When you see lightning, count the number of seconds that pass until you hear thunder.  If you hear thunder within 30 seconds of seeing lightning, the storm is within six miles. Seek shelter immediately. Wait at least 30 minutes after the last clap of thunder before leaving shelter.

If you are at home when a storm is expected, unplug major or unnecessary appliances such as televisions and air conditioners, as power surges can damage appliances beyond repair. Avoid using corded phones or any electrical appliances.

Lightning can enter your home as a direct strike, through wires or pipes that extend outside your home (i.e. water, gas pipes), or through the ground. Once it makes it into your home, the current generated by the lightning strike can travel through electrical lines, plumbing, phone lines, radio or television reception systems. Flexible gas line is more susceptible to lightning damage than iron pipe. Look, listen and smell for gas leaks and any evidence of a fire. If the fire is small (smoldering) and in a remote location such as the crawl space, basement, or attic, you may not be able to see flames but you can often smell or see smoke.

If you detect any unusual odors or see any smoke, call 9-1-1 immediately.

National Lightning Safety Awareness Week is June 20-26. Take a few minutes this week to make sure your family members know what to do when they are outside or at home and hear thunder. Don’t wait for the rain to begin to take shelter. A comprehensive list of safety tips and other lightning resources are available at http://www.lightningsafety.noaa.gov.

Article Credits: Fire Marshal Alan Perkins, CFPS, is a 32-year veteran of the fire service. A Certified Fire Protection Specialist through the National Fire Protection Association and a member of several similar safety organizations. Perkins is the Fire Marshal for the Washington Township Fire Department, Dublin, Ohio. For more information, contact: Leslie Dybiec, Public Information Officer Phone: (614) 652-3928 Fax: (614) 766-2507 or ldybiec@wtwp.com.

Images: Courtesy of Google Images

Live Safe Foundation is an Ohio based non-profit organization (501c3), and leading grassroots movement, devoted to making fire safety education, awareness initiatives and life saving tools available on a broad basis to communities, campuses, and institutions in an effort to reduce national fire fatalities and fire losses. Live Safe aims to help finance fire safety education where means are otherwise unavailable. Live Safe is developing and sponsoring programs to help groups find the resources needed to advance individual and community fire safety.

• Plug in only as many appliances as an outlet can support directly. Do not use un-fused, multi-plug adapters or power strips as the electrical circuit may not be able to support the demand for that amount of current.
• Use extension cords only for temporary portable equipment, not in place of your home’s permanent wiring. Equipment supplied with electricity by an extension cord must have a lower amperage rating than that of the extension cord. Using an extension cord for a portable heater, which requires a lot of amperage, could cause the extension cord to overheat at the cord end and outlet and start a fire.
• Replace or have repaired by an electrician any frayed, split, cracked or otherwise damaged cords. Damaged cords can cause a short in the circuit, heat up, and start a fire. Wrapping electrical tape around a damaged cord may not repair it.
• When removing an electrical cord from an outlet, grasp on the plug portion instead of the cord.
• Do not lay cords under rugs, over nails or hooks, or through doorways or windows where they may get smashed, cut or split and cause a fire or shock hazard.
• If you have small children in your home, cover unused electrical outlets with plastic safety caps.
• Use bulbs that match the recommended wattage for that appliance or light fixture. Bulbs with wattages in excess of what is recommended may give off enough heat to start a fire.
• If outlets or switch boxes are cracked or discolored, turn the circuit off and have them checked by an electrician. They may need to be replaced.
• Keep heat-generating appliances and light bulbs away from anything flammable. Allow sufficient space around stereos, televisions and computers to prevent over-heating.
• Purchase appliances and cords with the UL (Underwriters Laboratories) or FM (Factory Mutual) label indicating they have been tested for safety.
• Consider having additional circuits and outlets added to your home by an electrician, especially if you are using extension cords and power strips. The price tag will not be near what an electrical fire would cost in money and lives.

Line of Duty” Author: Fire Marshal Alan Perkins, CFPS, is a 32-year veteran of the fire service. A Certified Fire Protection Specialist through the National Fire Protection Association and a member of several similar safety organizations. Perkins is working with the Ohio Fire Officials Association for state law mandating photoelectric or equivalent smoke detection technology in new residential construction. Perkins is the Fire Marshal for the Washington Township Fire Department, Dublin, Ohio. For more information, contact: Leslie Dybiec, Public Information Officer Phone: (614) 652-3928 Fax: (614) 766-2507 or ldybiec@wtwp.com.

LiveSafe Foundation is an Ohio based non-profit organization (501c3), and leading grassroots movement, devoted to making fire safety education, awareness initiatives and life saving tools available on a broad basis to communities, campuses, and institutions in an effort to reduce national fire fatalities and fire losses. LiveSafe aims to help finance fire safety education where means are otherwise unavailable. LiveSafe is developing and sponsoring programs to help groups find the resources needed to advance individual and community fire safety.

• Buy a reliable heater. Look for the label stating that your space heater has been approved by an independent testing laboratory and meets safety standards. Choose models with safety features like an automatic switch that turns off the heater if it tips over.
• Place your heater in a safe location – on a hard, level surface with sufficient ventilation and at least three feet away from anything that might catch fire, like furniture, draperies, newspapers, etc. Also, keep it clear of sinks, tubs, or any other sources of water that might lead to an electric shock.
• Check your cords. Don’t use equipment with cords that are frayed or damaged in any way, and don’t plug your heater into an extension cord.
• Install and maintain alarms. Your home should have working detectors for smoke and carbon monoxide on every floor. Test them thoroughly and frequently.
• Never leave your heater unattended. Turn it off when you go to bed or leave the home.

Download a printable tip sheet on heating safety from the NFPA.

LiveSafe Foundation is an Ohio based non-profit organization (501c3), and leading grassroots movement, devoted to making fire safety education, awareness initiatives and life saving tools available on a broad basis to communities, campuses, and institutions in an effort to reduce national fire fatalities and fire losses. LiveSafe aims to help finance fire safety education where means are otherwise unavailable.  LiveSafe is developing and sponsoring programs to help groups find the resources needed to advance individual and community fire safety.