01/17/2019
Fire safety to keep in mind for seniors
To increase fire safety for older adults, NFPA (http://bit.ly/2QGGw35) offers the following guidelines:
• Keep it low - If you don't live in an apartment building, consider sleeping in a room on the ground floor in order to make emergency escape easier. Make sure that smoke alarms are installed in every sleeping room and outside any sleeping areas.
• Sound the alarm - The majority of fatal fires occur when people are sleeping, and because smoke can put you into a deeper sleep rather than waking you, it´s important to have a mechanical early warning of a fire to ensure that you wake up.
• Do the drill - Conduct your own, or participate in, regular fire drills to make sure you know what to do in the event of a home fire.
• Open up - Make sure that you are able to open all doors and windows in your home.
• Stay connected - Keep a telephone nearby, along with emergency phone numbers so that you can communicate with emergency personnel if you're trapped in your room by fire or smoke.