August, 2005
Don't be Lazy about Fire Safety!
I don’t think of myself as being lazy. I prefer to think of any
procrastination on my part being due to the fact that I am “particular”
as to which job I undertake. After all, a guy can only do so much,
and, over the years, I have observed that for every job completed on the
“honey do” list another seems to appear. I preface my article with
this admission so that you will understand, especially the guys, that I
realize there is the potential for dire consequences associated with
this article - work. Read on, if you dare.
WASHINGTON, D.C. – More than 3,000 people die each year in fires,
according to a new study released by the Federal Emergency Management
Agency’s U.S. Fire Administration. Michael D. Brown, Under
Secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security for Emergency
Preparedness and Response and FEMA’s Director, called the special
report, Fatal Fires, “alarming. Residential structure
fires, the very place people should feel the safest, unfortunately
account for the vast majority of fatal fires,” said Brown. “What’s most
worrisome is that in a full two-thirds of these fires, smoke alarms are
missing or not working.”
More than two thousand people died in 2003 in homes with non-working
smoke alarms! How can that be? In 1973 America Burning
was released; it was The Report of the National Commission on Fire
Prevention and Control. The Report, “urged Americans to
protect themselves and their families by installing… alarms in their
homes.” At the time of the publication of the report it was
estimated that 12,000 people died annually as a result of fire (there
was no National reporting system). That number dropped to 6,200 in 1989,
and to 3,300 in 2003, which is a significant decline. Would not
1000 be even better? Michigan had 112 residential fire fatalities
in 2002 with 21 operational alarms, and 115 residential fire fatalities
in 2003 with 20 operational alarms. These numbers equal over 80% of the
homes not having working smoke alarms, numbers very much like those of
1973.
Why are thousands of people killed annually in homes without smoke
detectors? I think there are several reasons:
- Antithesis of Chicken Little’s complex – In other
words we don’t think the sky will ever fall or our house will ever burn
(also sometimes referred to as the “it will never happen to me” complex.
- Higher fiscal priorities – “Gosh, if I buy a smoke
detector for each floor, I won’t have enough to buy ____.” (fill in the
blank with beer, cigarettes, go to the casino, milk, shoes, etc.) Two
smoke alarms are less than twenty dollars. Isn’t the life of your loved
one worth twenty bucks?
- Genuine financial problems. Smoke alarm programs
are available for people who are in need. If you can’t afford to buy
smoke detectors we can get you one for free.
- I’ll do it tomorrow. These people intend to do it;
they just haven’t gotten around to it yet.
I must admit that I may be being somewhat pious about this. I just
replaced my smoke detectors recently. Replaced? Did he just
say replaced? Oh, yea, I forgot to mention that smoke detectors
require maintenance. If you don’t have a unit with a lithium
battery, the batteries must be changed every six months. AC
powered units should be replaced after ten years. Additionally,
it’s a good idea to vacuum your units occasionally to make sure that
there isn’t an accumulation of dust or spider webs.
Please, make my job easier and purchase and maintain a smoke detector
at least for every floor of your house. You see, there is a very
good chance that I could be the person notifying your survivors that you
were killed because you didn’t have a smoke detector.
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