Safety Tips Archives - Page 2 of 2 - Central County Fire & Rescue

10 Years

Posted on February 25, 2014

10 candle

In 2004 Facebook was launched and Friends left our televisions. It seems like yesterday, but if that’s the last time you replaced your smoke alarms it’s time for a change.

“Working smoke detectors are critical to saving lives in a house fire, and as they age they become less reliable,” says CCFR Chief Russ Mason. As the electrical components in the alarms get older they become more susceptible to false alarms and other problems.

Smoke alarms save lives by giving people an opportunity to escape a fire before it is too late. “Almost two-thirds of home fire deaths result from fires in homes with no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms,” says Mason. “Simply updating and maintaining your smoke detectors could save your life.”

Installation

Install smoke alarms:

On every level of your home
Inside and outside sleeping areas
High on a wall, or on the ceiling
Away from air vents and windows
At the highest point of pitched ceilings

Battery Replacement

Standard battery operated smoke alarm batteries need to be replaced every six months.
Long lasting battery smoke alarms should be replaced according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
Hard-wired smoke alarms should have the back-up battery replaced once a year.

If you do not know how, or cannot replace your smoke alarm batteries, cannot afford a smoke alarm, or have other smoke alarm questions CCFR can provide complimentary assistance. Call CCFR at 636.970.9700, or e-mail us for details.

Download our smoke detector brochure, or learn more here.

Business Alert

Posted on February 14, 2014

Two spontaneous combustion fires hit local businesses.

Spontaneous combustion fires may sound like something out of a science fiction movie; unfortunately it is a dangerous situation that has hit two local businesses in the past year. In both of the incidents, freshly laundered towels placed on a counter caused a chemical reaction to occur, and a fire ensued.

When towels or other linens soiled with cooking oil or cleaning chemicals are washed in a normal washer and dryer they are not truly clean; residue remains on the linens. The heat of the dryer can start and accelerate the spontaneous heating process of the oil residue left in the towels. When they are piled together the heat has no way to escape and the natural material continues to heat up until a fire occurs. A similar reaction can occur if a washer or dryer used to launder soiled linens is not cleaned and well maintained.

We highly recommend that you send your laundry out to a commercial laundry service that has the proper equipment to handle these volatile oils and cleaning chemicals.

Tips to Avoid Spontaneous Combustion

Use a commercial laundry service.
Follow the manufacturer’s instructions on all cleaning supplies and equipment.
Do not leave items soiled by oil or other flammable items in a pile, even if they are freshly laundered.
Make sure that the washer and dryer are clean and well maintained.
If rags have been used for painting, wood-finishing or oil-based projects, hang them outside to dry, or place them in an airtight metal container that is placed away from the building, and do not launder them.

If you have any questions about how to keep your business safe, or if you would like CCFR firefighters to provide complimentary employee training on fire extinguisher usage, or other safety topics please do not hesitate to call us at 636.970.9700 or send us an email. With your help we can keep our community safe.

Prevention Month

Posted on October 2, 2013

Prevent Kitchen fires It only takes a second for a kitchen fire to start when someone steps away to answer a phone call, leaves a dishtowel too close to the stove, or overfills a frying pan with oil. These types of accidents result in more than 100,000 home fires every year according to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA). As part of its Fire Prevention Month, Central County Fire & Rescue (CCFR) is working to prevent these accidents by building awareness about kitchen fire prevention throughout October.

“With all of the open heat sources, it is easy to see why two out of every five home fires start in the kitchen, and why they are the leading cause of home fire-related injuries” says CCFR Chief Russ Mason. “Many people are simply unaware of the real dangers present in their kitchens.”

CCFR and the NFPA recommend following these tips to avoid a kitchen fire:

Stay in the kitchen when you are frying, grilling, broiling, or boiling food.
If you must leave the room, even for a short period of time, turn off the stove.
When you are simmering, baking, or roasting food, check it regularly, stay in the home, and use a timer to remind you.
If you have young children, use the stove’s back burners whenever possible. Keep children and pets at least three away from the stove.
When you cook, wear clothing with tight-fitting sleeves.
Keep potholders, oven mitts, wooden utensils, paper and plastic bags, towels, and anything else that can burn, away from your stovetop.
Clean up food and grease from burners and stovetops.

Throughout the month, CCFR firefighters will present safety lessons to kindergarten through third grade classrooms throughout the fire district. Kitchen fire prevention information will also be distributed at community events and through the District’s enewsletter and website. CCFR’s Fire Prevention Month is in conjunction with NFPA’s Fire Prevention Week, which is the longest running public health and safety observance on record.