Do Something That Makes Another Life Better!

The morning kicked off with a 40-minute training session for Dublin volunteers provided by Fire Marshal Alan Perkins and Jill Marcinick, Founder of the Live Safe Foundation. The training included 16 key messages from “Remembering When^TM“, a program fall and fire prevention program developed by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Center for High-Risk Outreach and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Volunteers were taught how to evaluate a client’s home for hazards using a Home Safety Checklist, as well as how to test a smoke alarm and change its batteries. A team of trained volunteers then dispatched from the Washington Township Fire Department Administrative building to meet and greet various homeowners in targeted areas offering tips and tools to prepare them for the winter season. The mission for the “Make A Difference Day” volunteer was to help keep our Dublin community fire safe and to educate on how to prevent fires and potential fall in the home.

A complimentary literature bag of was provided to each homeowner which included: Remembering When^TM Home Safety Checklists, Brochures and fire/fall prevention reminders, Night Light with battery back-up, Smoke Alarm batteries and other important handouts and safety tools. After each home visit, additional literature bags were dropped off in the areas surrounding homes that delivered important fire safety messages, particularly for the elderly community. The actions of our Dublin volunteers improved the lives and safety for several of the local Seniors. More importantly, the Dublin volunteers found that making a difference for others made a bigger difference in their own lives and personal safety.

The Live Safe Foundation and Washington Township Fire Department are continuing ongoing complimentary Home Fire Safety Surveys. If you would like a home safety consultation or any further assistance and/or questions, please contact the Live Safe Foundation or Washington Township Fire Department (614.652.3920) to ensure your home is fire safe and free of any potential hazards. Let us help you!

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.

Warnings from smoke alarms can provide those critical extra seconds people need to get out of their homes safely. Overall, roughly 66% of home fire deaths in the United States occur in homes without working smoke alarms. And nearly half of all home fire deaths result from fires that occur between 11:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., when we are the most vulnerable.

Use the hour you gain each year in the fall to:

• Test all the smoke alarms in your home by pushing the test button.
• Replace any batteries that have expired. Most smoke alarms use one nine- volt battery.
• Plan with your family two escape routes in the event of a fire and practice them.
• Prepare a fire safety kit that includes working flashlights and fresh batteries.
• Replace any smoke alarms that are ten or more years old.

Having working smoke alarms in your home is a simple and effective way to reduce your risk of dying in a home fire by nearly half.  Considering that residential fire deaths peak in winter months, it makes sense to change your smoke and carbon monoxide alarm batteries each and every fall. On November 7th, change your clock and change your batteries, and remind your relatives and friends to do so too. If you have questions or need advice on installation or testing of smoke or carbon monoxide alarms, contact the Washington Township Fire Department at (614) 652-3920.

The Washington Township Fire Department provides fire prevention, fire suppression, emergency medical services, and education and safety programs for Washington Township, which encompasses parts of Franklin, Delaware and Union Counties.

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.

“Smoke alarms are such a common presence in our homes that it’s easy to just expect them to work every time,” says CableOrganizer.com product specialist Christina Hansen. “But like many other devices and appliances around the house, smoke detectors require regular cleaning and maintenance to function effectively. And, there are many models on the market offering both smoke and carbon monoxide detection – an often overlooked consideration.”

To ensure the best family fire safety, smoke and carbon monoxide detection possible, CableOrganizer.com offers these tips:

Easy Fire Safety Strategies:

• If you have children in the house, always store candles and matches well out of their reach, either in a locked drawer or on a high shelf.
• Always keep space heaters a minimum of 3 feet away from flammable materials like paper, clothing, bedding and draperies.
• Never leave food that’s being cooked on the stovetop or under the broiler unattended – if you need to leave the kitchen, turn off the heat source.
• Keep a small multi-purpose fire extinguisher (one that’s approved by a testing laboratory) in your home for putting out small fires.
• If you have a fireplace, be sure to have it cleaned by a professional once a year to remove flammable soot, and always keep screen in place to catch flying sparks.
• When grilling outdoors, always use the appropriate type of lighter fluid, and never add more after the fire is lit – this can cause flames to flare up and spread to other objects or areas.

Smoke Alarm Maintenance Musts:

• Keep them clean. Use your vacuum cleaner’s upholstery attachment to clear way dust and cobwebs. And if the manufacturer’s instructions say that it’s safe to, gently vacuum inside the detector as well.
• Change the batteries once a year. Choose a date that’s easy to remember, like a birthday, anniversary, or the day you switch over to Daylight Saving Time.
• Test your smoke detectors every month. Just press the test button – if the alarm sounds, it works. Want to be extra sure? Light a candle, blow it out, and then hold it below the detector – the trailing smoke should set the alarm off.

Facts to Know About Carbon Monoxide:

• Carbon Monoxide (CO) is produced when wood and fossil fuels like oil, natural gas, charcoal, kerosene and gasoline don’t burn completely.
• CO can’t be seen, smelled, or tasted – that’s why its nickname is “the Silent Killer.” Only a carbon monoxide detector can warn you that CO is present.
• CO poisoning often feels like the flu, with symptoms like fatigue, muscle aches, nausea and headache, but can progress to disorientation, elevated heart rate, convulsions, organ damage, and even death.
• Carbon monoxide harms people by blocking oxygen from entering the bloodstream. CO bonds to the hemoglobin in blood, preventing it from doing its job: carrying oxygen throughout your body.
• When you’re asleep, you can’t feel CO symptoms. Make sure that carbon monoxidedetectors are installed in all bedrooms and sleeping areas of your home – they save lives!

Creating an Escape Plan:

Does your family know where to go and what to do if your smoke alarm or carbon monoxide detector goes off? If not, NOW is the time to make a plan!

• Walk through your home with your children and point out all possible exits, like doors, windows and fire escapes.
• Sit down together to draw a map of your home, and mark the shortest escape routes from each room.
• Choose someplace safe and familiar outside your home where family members can meet in an emergency, such as a neighbor’s house, a nearby street sign, or a lamp-post.
• Pair young, elderly, or handicapped members of your household with an “escape buddy” who can help them safely leave the house during a fire or any other emergency.
• Hold practice escape drills every few months, both day and night, so that your family is extremely familiar with the procedure should an emergency ever occur.

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.

Data from the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) indicates that many installed smoke detectors aren’t working, usually because of missing, disconnected or dead batteries. Roughly two-thirds of all home fire deaths result from fires with no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms.

Working smoke alarms should be used in every home, on every level (including the basement), outside each sleeping area and inside each bedroom. And, if a smoke alarm is 10 years old or older, it should be replaced. In addition, the right type of smoke alarm should be used. Which is the right type?

Find out at the upcoming Fire Prevention Week Open House, on October 3rd, 2010, in Dublin, Ohio. Fire Marshal Alan Perkins will be offering presentations at Station 92 (4497 Hard Road) to demonstrate how the two main smoke alarms types work and under what conditions they are most likely to be activated, so you are made aware of the deadly smoke or fire before it overcomes you.

Having a working smoke alarm in your home is not a guarantee that it will sound. I can show you why and how to increase the likelihood of it responding. In addition to smoke alarm presentations, our open house event will feature several family-oriented activities and demonstrations at each of our four fire stations.

So join us in celebrating this year’s Fire Prevention Week theme: “Smoke Alarms: A Sound You Can Live With,” by learning more about smoke alarms and fire safety on October 3rd from 1-4 p.m.

Keep your smoke alarms working by:

•    Testing them at least once a month using the test button, and making sure everyone in your home knows their sound.
•    Replacing the battery immediately if you hear it  “chirping,” an indicator that the battery is low.
•    Replacing them when they are 10 years old or sooner (if they don’t respond properly when tested). This includes hard-wired alarms also.
•    Never removing or disabling them.

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.

Very shortly, many college students will be on their way to college. Some will be living on campus or in off-campus housing.  So, here are some safety tips that students should be aware of.  All students should review these tips and parents, please share these tips with your child before he or she heads off to college this year.

• Have an escape plan. Learn where all the exits are to make a faster escape in a fire emergency.  On campus, there should be a plan in place already. If you don’t know what it is, the Public Safety Office should be able to tell you. If this information is not readily available or you are living off campus, take a few minutes to walk around and do your own pre-plan.
• Know how to make a notification of a fire emergency .  Find out where alarm pull boxes are and what number to call to report a fire.
• If the alarm sounds, leave immediately and close the door behind you. Remember to take your keys should you have to re-enter the room if your escape route is blocked with fire or smoke.
• Don’t hang anything from sprinkler heads. This could disable or block the flow of water, which is necessary to help contain or extinguish flames.
• Make sure there are working smoke detectors outside and inside your sleeping quarters. Test monthly. Never disable a smoke detector or the fire alarm. These are installed to give warning to you and your neighbors so you can quickly exit should smoke or fire be detected.
• Only use fire extinguisher for emergencies. They are there for you to use should you have to put out a small, contained fire.  Don’t waste this equipment on a midnight water fight!  For an extra level of safety, keep an ABC extinguisher in your room and learn how to use it.  They are labeled with simple instructions.

Know how to escape:

• If you have to escape through smoke, get low and get to the nearest exit. The cleanest air is close to the ground.
• Before opening a door, feel the door with the back of your hand. If it’s hot, don’t open it. Find a second way out.
• If you are trapped in your room, seal your door with towels, rags, or clothing so that smoke cannot enter from the hall.
• Get out and stay out.  No textbook, homework assignment, laptop, cell phone or wallet is worth going back for.  You were lucky to get out safely once. You might not be as lucky a second time.

Article provided by, Wendy Liu. Wendy is a mother, and also the Public Information Officer for the Sayville Fire Department who also enjoys spending time volunteering within the community. To learn more about Wendy and preview her other article, please visit: http://sayville.patch.com/users/wendy-liu/articles.

Images provided by www.google.com/images.

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.

This year’s official theme for Fire Prevention Week (FPW), was just announced by the NFPA: “Smoke Alarms: A Sound You Can Live With!”, held this coming October 3-9, 2010.

This year’s campaign is designed to educate people about the importance of smoke alarms and encourages everyone to take the steps necessary to update and maintain their home smoke alarm protection.

Fire service: All the materials you need for your campaign

Teachers: Lesson plans and letters to send home

Kids and families: Learning about fire safety can be fun

Article Credits: www.nfpa.org

Be sure to follow the Live Safe Foundation for the latest on local events related to fire safety. Live Safe 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.

“This study strongly underscores the need to aggressively work to reduce the number of home fires in this country in order to save lives from fire,” said Lorraine Carli, vice president of communications for NFPA.

During the period of 2003-2007, U.S. fire departments responded to approximately 380,000 home fires a year. These fires not only caused a large number of civilian deaths, they also caused an average of 13,160 reported civilian fire injuries and $6.4 billion in direct property damage.

From 2003-2007, smoking materials caused the largest number of fire deaths. Heating equipment was the second leading cause of home fires and home fire deaths.

The leading cause of home structure fires, civilian fire injuries, and unreported fires continues to be cooking equipment. Forty-one percent of home fires started in the kitchen area and caused 15 percent of the home fire deaths and 36 percent of the reported fire injuries.

Other key findings include:

• Reported home fires peaked around dinner hours of 5 to 8 p.m.
• Only 20 percent of the reported home fires occurred between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m., however 52 percent of home fire deaths resulted from fires reported during these hours.
• Thirty percent of reported home structure fires and 38 percent of home fire deaths occurred in the quarter including December, January, and February.
• Reported apartment fires were more likely to start in the kitchen than fires in one- and two-family homes.
• The two leading items first ignited in home fire deaths are upholstered furniture in 21 percent of home fire deaths, followed by mattress and bedding in 13 percent of the deaths.

Properly installed and maintained fire protection can prevent most fire deaths. Forty percent of fatal home fire injuries occurred in properties where no smoke alarms were present. Home fire sprinklers can also help, as the death rate per 1,000 reported home fires was 83 percent lower when wet pipe sprinkler systems were present, compared to reported home fires without automatic extinguishing equipment.

“Smoke alarms have been a key factor in significantly reducing the fire death problem since their widespread use beginning in the ‘70s,” Carli said. “The move to require home fire sprinklers in new homes will be the next step forward in fire protection.”

NFPA offers these safety tips to prevent home structure fires from occurring:

• Keep anything that can catch fire—oven mitts, wooden utensils, food packaging, towels or curtains—away from the stovetop.
• Keep anything that can burn, such as paper, bedding, or furniture, at least three feet away from heating equipment and have a three-foot “kid-free zone” around stoves, open fires, and space heaters.
• Remember to turn off portable heaters when leaving the room or going to bed.
• Smoke alarm accessories are available for people who are hard of hearing. These accessories activate from the sound of traditional smoke alarms and produce a complex low frequency alarm signal, more effective at waking those with mild to severe hearing loss.

For the complete list of safety tips, visit www.nfpa.org/safetytips.

Article Credits: www.nfpa.org

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.

This doesn’t seem possible, does it? After all, if there is a fresh battery in your detector and you have tested it to ensure that it is in working order, you and your family members should be safe, right? Maybe not! There is compelling research-based evidence that demonstrates that ionization-type detectors are ineffective in smoldering type fires, the most common cause of fatalities in home fires. In fact, tests have shown that ionization type smoke alarms don’t sound, even after the level of carbon monoxide and smoke reaches deadly concentrations. An alarming amount of documented residential fire deaths have occurred with only the installed ionization type detectors. Had there been a properly installed photoelectric detector in these situations, an alarm would have sounded to warn occupants of the life-threatening situation.

A 1994 study at Texas A&M concluded that the probability of a photoelectric detector failing to detect a smoldering fire is four percent, while the ionization detector provided close to 56% probability of failure in the same fire condition.

One of the reasons for the differences in the performance of these two detector types is in the way they are activated. Ionization smoke alarms contain a small amount of radioactive material and establish a small electric current between two metal plates. When the current is disrupted by smoke, the alarm sounds. This older type of technology is typically more responsive to a flaming fire, such as a kitchen pan fire, but it’s also more susceptible to nuisance alarms from bathroom humidity or cooking vapors when placed within 20 feet of a kitchen.

Photoelectric smoke alarms contain a light source and a light-sensitive electric cell. Smoke entering the detector deflects light onto the light-sensitive electric cell, triggering the alarm. These alarms are more sensitive to large particles given off during smoldering fires, such as an electrical fire-the kind of fires that usually occur at night when people are asleep.

For many years, authorities have urged homeowners to install smoke alarms without consideration to the type of potential fire ignition or the quality of smoke detection. This was based on the urgency to equip all homes with smoke detection with what was readily available on the market.

It is no surprise, then, that more than 90% of homes in the United States have only the ionization detection technology, leaving those occupants vulnerable to the most common and deadly type of fire.

To ensure your family gets the early warning they need to survive the toxic gases of a smoldering fire, install photoelectric smoke alarms immediately in and outside sleeping areas. They cost a bit more than the ionization type, but are now readily available at local hardware and home improvement stores. Use this past weekend’s time change to Daylight Savings Time, as your goal for making these important changes in your home.

Along with properly installing and maintaining new and existing smoke alarms, develop and practice an escape plan that includes two ways out of every room, so that everyone in the home knows what to do if the smoke alarms sounds. Home occupants who practice an escape plan reduce their time to escape in every type of fire.

If you have questions concerning the installation of photoelectric smoke alarms, contact the Washington Township Fire Department at (614) 652-3920.

If you would like more information about this important issue, watch the Stop the Children Burning series on youtube.com. A very informative news report from Indiana’s Channel 13 called UL-approved smoke alarms may give false sense of security is also on youtube.com. It details the studies done at Texas A&M. Take a few minutes to review these videos. Then get photoelectric smoke alarms for your home!

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.

Is the value of your Valentine’s Day tied up in a gift?

One sure-fire way you can make a difference on Valentine’s Day is to provide your sweetheart a priceless gift that says, “I want you around for a long time”.   You can still have a little fun and throw in something sweet, but don’t forget to include something to “put out the fire” such as these items recommended by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA):

Facts and figures to consider for seasonal safety:

• December, January and February are the deadliest months for fires.
• Cooking and heating are the leading causes of home fires in the months of December through February.
• Candle fires have nearly tripled in the past decade.

And what you might ask, is the hottest Valentines Day gift this year?

LIVESAFE T-Shirts, Caps, Logo Apparel and Gift Items!
Yes, for the person who has *everything*, why not purchase an authentic LIVESAFE T-Shirt, Cap or Apparel Item? It’s a gift you know they will wear with pride, and a gift you can feel good about giving.

Proceeds from apparel sales will support TEAM RISE: Members of Team RISE (Runners Inspired by Survivors Everywhere) are preparing to put their running shoes on this spring to raise money for the Phoenix Society.  On May 2, 2010 for the sixth time the group will be participating in Cincinnati’s Flying Pig marathon.  Team leader and event organizer, Bill Zembrodt, is encouraging other Phoenix Society members to join the team for this year’s event. www.phoenix-society.org.

Please accept our wishes for a joyous, memorable – and safe Valentines Day!

For product information and safety supplies, please visit our Programmatic Partner the National Institute for Fire and Safety Training online web store for product and other fire safety related information.

Photo Chart: Google Images

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.