7 Safety Tips To Remember in Case a House Fire Occurs To Your Iowa Home

Fire is simply a disaster! Not only is it stressful but it also results in any damages, not to mention killing lives. Be prepared by knowing how to handle this kind of situation with these helpful tips: 

1. Prepare Emergency Kits

 Since you’ll never know when accidents can happen, emergency kits are most certainly a must-have for these homes.

This should contain:

• Some clothing
• First-aid supplies
• Water bottles
• Non-perishable foods
• Some cash

 Yes! You've read it right. You should place some cash in there to know you can spend some money in case everything gets burned. Otherwise, add an ATM card or credit card specifically for this purpose.  

Where should you place this?

This should be placed where you can easily grab it in case of fire. You can also keep it near your front or back doors. But do keep it secured, especially with some cash hidden inside it.

2. Create An Escape Plan

Writing down an escape plan helps educate you and your family on the things to do when the house is on fire. It allows them to know the emergency exits and emergency kits. It prepares you and gives you that presence of mind in an emergency situation.

Create a clear escape plan. Revise it as needed but be sure you have clearly indicated where the exits are and where to go once they got out of the house. Also, input the emergency contacts list to call.

3. Put up Rope Ladders on the Upper Floors

Fire can crawl up fast and it can block your way out. It will hard for you especially if you are on the upper floors when the fire happens. Putting up rope ladders near the windows can help you to have a way down.

Be sure that it is sturdy and durable to avoid falling on your way down. So do a regular inspection of your ropes and ladders.

4. Invest in Smoke Alarms and Fire Extinguisher

This is an advanced way to protect and prevent a house fire. Investing in smoke alarms and fire extinguishers might sound expensive. Don’t worry, there are companies that can offer you affordable prices like Honeywell enterprises. They can offer you an alarm system that is dependable at a reasonable price.

Smoke alarms can help you detect a fire early. This way you can give action to it immediately. While fire extinguisher is like your sword against physical fire. Imagine just how these can increase your safety in case of a house fire. 

5. Educate Yourself About Fire Drills

Remember when you conducted a fire drill at your office or school? Those things will help you in case of fire. Be sure to educate and re-educate yourself and your family about the things to do if situations arise.

These things might include:

• Cover your mouth and nose with a wet cloth to avoid inhaling fire smoke. (it can suffocate you and you might pass out. You will not be able to go out of the house if you pass out.
• Stay low on the ground. Staying low on the ground can help you to be less vulnerable in the smoke fire. Get down on your hands and knees to avoid the smoke that is rising up.
• Test doors for heat. Before trying to open a door to escape, check first for heat signs. This will prevent you from getting burnt. Observe for smoke seeping through between the door and the wall. If there is, it’s not safe to open that door.
• Observe smoke signs. Check for smoke, if you are upstairs and you see smoke coming up from the stairs, that’s a sign that the fire is already heating up downstairs. Look for an alternative route. 

6. Go to a safe distance and don’t go back

Once you have successfully gone out of the house, be sure to run to a safe distance. There might be falling debris from your burning house so it's best to stay far away from it.

Do not be tempted to back into the house to retrieve or save anything. Even if it is important, it couldn't be more important than your life, right? Rather let the fire department handle this for you.

7. Practice and Enact

Practicing and enacting the things to do in case of fire can help you and your family to keep a heads up. Oftentimes, when the situation suddenly comes in behind your back can surprise and leave you shocked. You might get overwhelmed with the situation and end up panicking.

Treat this as a family activity from time to time. It might sound tiring for the others but doing this so it will be like muscle memory. If ever the situation comes in, you and your family know what to do.

Hopefully, these tips can help you in preparing yourself and your family for a life-threatening situation like a fire. If ever you need professional assistance to install security and fire alarm systems to your house, just send us a message.