The alarm sounds. A fire has broken out and your residents are asleep.
Do you know what to do?
Not the best advice!
It only takes two lungfuls of smoke to kill you, so it’s vital to have an evacuation plan in place.
Fire spreads fast; so there is not much time to think about your next action.
So what can you do?
- Act quickly. Alert everyone, get together and take your planned route out
- Don’t waste time saving valuables
- Test to see if a door is warm with the back of your hand before opening, fire may be on the other side
- Don’t investigate the fire unless trained to do so
- If there’s smoke, keep as low as possible
- Close any open doors behind you
- If you’re trapped in a fire, get behind a fire door and block the bottom of the door with a towel, sheets or clothing to prevent smoke getting through.
- Call 999
- Don’t go back into the building.
These were a few examples of ways to help make evacuation easier. In general, there are lots of simple things you can do to help provide a safer environment. However it’s worth bearing in mind that without an evacuation plan in place, these won’t work.
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