Fire safety
Taking precautions to avoid fire damage
All residents can implement some simple measures to reduce the risk of starting a fire in their homes or places of work. The London Fire Brigade has provided these easy-to-follow instructions to make your premises safer:
- Ensure a fire guard is placed over heaters and open fires and children are kept well away from them. Fire kills and injures thousands of youngsters each year, so ensure they are kept well away from fire of any kind.
- Never put clothes on or near a heater to dry as material and fabric can catch light very easily. Every year, around 80 people in the UK are killed when their clothing catches fire, so never sit too close to a fire or heater.
- Make sure that electric blankets are serviced regularly by a qualified electrician. Check that it has a device called an overheat protector which cuts off the power if it overheats. Local councils or trading standards may know of free testing days in the area.
- In London, more than a third of accidental fires start in the kitchen and nearly all involve the cooker. Never leave a cooker unattended when it is switched on and make sure that children are not left unsupervised in the kitchen.
- Finally, smoke alarms save lives. You can now buy smoke alarms with a ten-year battery life for as little as five pounds. London Fire Brigade carries out free home fire safety checks and fits smoke alarms for older and vulnerable people.
Home fire safety checks can be arranged by calling the London Fire Brigade on freephone 08000 284428.
