The Lakewood Board of Fire Commissioners in conjunction with Fire Chief Mike D’Elia Jr., Fire Prevention Coordinator Jacob Woolf, and the members of the Lakewood Fire Department are hosting Fire Safety Day on Sunday, October 8, 2017 from 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. The event will be held at Fire Station 64 which is located at 119 First Street at the corner of Monmouth Avenue. Fire apparatus will be on display and fire safety literature will be available.

The observance of Fire Prevention Week is deeply rooted in history. It originally began as Fire Prevention Day through a proclamation issued by President Woodrow Wilson for October 9, 1920. The date of October 9th was chosen to commemorate the Great Chicago Fire in 1871. This tragic conflagration killed more than 250 people, left 100,000 homeless, destroyed more than 17,400 structures and burned more than 2,000 acres in 27 hours. Although the origin of this fire has never been determined, one popular legend was that Mrs. Catherine O’Leary was milking her cow when the animal knocked over a lamp and set the O’Leary barn on fire, resulting in the spectacular blaze. In 1922, the observance was extended to one week by proclamation of President Warren G. Harding. Every succeeding President has followed this one-week observance during the Sunday through Saturday period, in which October 9th falls, through proclamations.

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), which was founded in 1896, played a major role in the origination of Fire Prevention Week and to date, they provide sponsorship for this observance. This year’s logo is “EVERY SECOND COUNTS, FIND TWO WAYS OUT.” The NFPA strongly recommends the following fire safety information be reviewed and practiced throughout the year.

Home Escape Plans – Families should develop home escape plans and practice them on a regular basis so they are prepared in the event a fire occurs. Included in the plan should be a predetermined meeting place

for the family outside of the home to insure all members have exited. Remember, once you exit your home, do not re-enter. If you are concerned about occupants still in the home, alert responding firefighters who will rescue them. If you are unable to escape, open windows or stand in front of them to alert responding firefighters. Remind children not to hide and reassure them the #1 priority for responding firefighters is to rescue occupants and to search the entire building for occupants who may be unable to escape.

SMOKE DETECTORS

2 out of 3 fire deaths are in homes with nonfunctioning smoke alarms.
In the United States, 62% of home fire deaths resulted from home fires with inoperable or no smoke alarms.
38% of total fire injuries occurred in homes with no smoke alarms.
In reported home fires with inoperable alarms, 50% had missing, disconnected, or dead batteries.
A home fire impacts the life of an American family every 85 seconds.
On average, you and your family have less than 2 minutes from the time the first smoke alarm sounds to escape.
Smoke alarms provide an early warning and critical extra seconds to escape – but only if they work!
Most if not all of the above is preventable with properly located and working smoke alarms.

CARBON MONOXIDE DETECTORS

Known as the invisible killer, CO is colorless & odorless.
CO effects adults and children differently, if your detector goes off check on your children and/or the elderly.
If your CO alarm goes off DON’T assume anything!
There are numerous potential CO sources, not just your stove or oven.
CO sources include: kitchen range or vent, water heater pipes, furnace, dryer, heaters, attached garage, neighboring apartments.
Don’t be lulled into a false sense of security, while most of the time it’s “nothing”, when something does happen it can be deadly. ALWAYS be diligent.
Standard smoke alarms don’t detect carbon monoxide.
35 million people are still at risk for carbon monoxide poisoning. Are you one of them?

Check out the following home safety tips… and put them to practical use!

Test your smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors monthly to make sure they are working.
Have at least one working smoke alarm on each level of your home.
Install one carbon monoxide detector in a central location outside each separate sleeping area
IF YOUR DETECTOR GOES OFF, FIND OUT WHY! DON’T ASSUME ANYTHING!
Carbon monoxide detectors are NOT substitutes for smoke alarms, they are NOT interchangeable.
Never disconnect your smoke alarms and/or CO alarms – no matter how “annoying” they are!
Do NOT rely on your sense of smell to alert you, by then it may be too late.
If your detectors are more than 10 years old, the detectors need to be replaced, not just the batteries.
30 seconds and a 9-volt battery can save your life.