A Day on Not a Day Off!

A very happy Martin Luther King Jr. day to all! To celebrate, volunteers from Hope Worldwide, AmeriCorps, and the The American Red Cross met in the south suburbs, Harvey and Riverdale, to hand out information on fire safety.

What are you doing on your “day on?”

Since we spent the morning sharing fire safety tips with some Chicagoland communities, we would like to share a disaster services experience from this weekend.

Yesterday, we met with a man who spent a lovely weekend in Ohio, only to return home to a disaster. His attic apartment had been completely destroyed by a fire that had taken place Friday afternoon. This is where the American Red Cross DAT team comes in; we provided this man with food, clothing and shelter to ensure his safety and well being in the days following his disaster. And now back to fire safety. The man stated that his home most likely caught fire due to a malfunction in a space heater.

Do you use a space heater?

Here are some friendly reminders when operating a space heater in your home:

HAZARDS:

Fires and burns caused by contact with or close proximity to the flame, heating element, or hot surface area.

Fires and explosions caused by flammable fuels or defective wiring.

Indoor air pollution caused by improper venting or incomplete combustion of fuel-burning equipment.

Carbon monoxide poisoning caused by improper venting of fuel-burning equipment.

SUGGESTIONS:

Select a space heater with a guard around the flame area or the heating element.

When selecting a heater, look for one that has been tested and certified by a nationally recognized testing laboratory.

Buy a heater that is the correct size for the area you want to heat.

Read and follow the manufacturer’s operating instructions.

Keep children and pets away from space heaters.

Keep doors open to the rest of the house if you are using an unvented fuel-burning space heater.

Never leave a space heater on when you go to sleep or leave the area.

Never use or store flammable liquids (such as gasoline) around a space heater.

Place heaters at least three feet away from objects such as bedding, furniture and drapes. Never use heaters to dry clothes or shoes. Do not place heaters where towels or other objects could fall on the heater and start a fire.

This information was found in a report on space heater safety done by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission. More information can be obtained at their site by following this link: http://www.cpsc.gov/CPSCPUB/PUBS/463.html

- Lily and Sam