Fire safety experts
agree: above all, we must teach all children, even the very young, to get out and
stay out of a burning or smoke-filled building. The inhalation of smoke and toxic
gases are more often the casue of death in a fire than burns. When fire fills a room
with smoke, it very quickly becomes difficult to see and breathe.
Smoke tends to rise,
leaving breathable air closer to the floor. This is why we must also teach children
to get low and go under smoke, and to crawl to safety. Getting across these
essential messages early and often may help to lessen the numbers of young children who
die from injuries related to smoke and fire.
Children need repeated practice to remember these ideas and apply them to
an emergency situation. Here are some ways you can help them:
- Have fire drills to allow children and adults to quietly locate the nearest exit, get
outside to a prearranged meeting place, and wait until told it's okay to go back inside.
- Use these times to discuss getting low under smoke and to learn how to recognize a
helpful firefighter even in a dark, smoke-filled room.
- Impress upon children that in the case of a real fire, they must get out immediately,
leaving behind personal belongings like hats and coats, toys, and pets. Use specific
examples to explain this concepts, such as a favorite toy, the family pet or even the
child's coat.
- Stress to childrn that they go to the same meeting place they went to during their
practice fire drillls.
- Finally, remind children that they must never go back inside until an adult tells them
it is safe to do so.
On our Kids' Page, we have five activities to do with your
children so that they may become Smoke Detectives and learn how to get out and
stay out.
