Smoke alarms and residential sprinkler systems save lives! Protect your home and family from house fires.
Fire Facts (from NFPA.org):
- Half of home fire deaths result from fires reported between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. Only one in five home fires were reported during these hours.
- One-quarter of home fire deaths were caused by fires that started in the bedroom. Another quarter resulted from fires in the living room, family room or den.
- Three out of five home fire deaths happen from fires in homes with no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms.
- In 2015, U.S. fire departments responded to an estimated 365,500 home structure fires. These fires caused 2,560 deaths, 11,075 civilian injuries, and $7 billion in direct damage.
- On average, seven people die in U.S. home fires per day.
- Cooking equipment is the leading cause of home fire injuries, followed by heating equipment.
- Smoking materials are the leading cause of home fire deaths.
- Most fatal fires kill one or two people...
- During 2010-2014, roughly, one of every 338 households reported a home fire per year.
Smoke Alarms Save Lives
If you have a working smoke alarm in your home, your chances of surviving a fire in your home are increased by 50%. Follow the manufacturer’s directions for installation, testing and maintenance of the smoke alarms. NFPA.org reports the following information related to smoke alarms and home fires.
- Half of home fire deaths result from fires reported between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. Only one in five home fires were reported during these hours.
- One-quarter of home fire deaths were caused by fires that started in the bedroom. Another quarter resulted from fires in the living room, family room or den.
- Three out of five home fire deaths happen from fires in homes with no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms.
- In 2015, U.S. fire departments responded to an estimated 365,500 home structure fires. These fires caused 2,560 deaths, 11,075 civilian injuries, and $7 billion in direct damage.
- On average, seven people die in U.S. home fires per day.
- Cooking equipment is the leading cause of home fire injuries, followed by heating equipment.
- Smoking materials are the leading cause of home fire deaths.
- Most fatal fires kill one or two people.
- During 2010--2014, roughly, one of every 338 households reported a home fire per year.
You should test your smoke alarms at least monthly for proper operation and change the batteries when you change your clocks, once in the spring and once in the fall. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) also recommends replacing your smoke alarm if it is more than 10 years old. According to NFPA, the alarms have a 30 percent chance of failure after being installed for 10 years. NFPA also recommends that smoke alarms be installed on each level of the structure and in every sleeping area. The smoke alarms should be interconnected so when one sounds they all sound and should have a battery back-up system so when there is a power failure the smoke alarm will operate properly.
Residential Sprinkler Systems save Lives & Protect Property
Residential fire sprinkler systems are a cost-effective way (approximately 1 to 1 ½ percent of the total building cost) of providing an effective fire protection system in your home. Combination residential sprinkler systems are installed using the cold water plumbing supply already in a house, eliminating the need to run a separate water supply for the sprinkler system.
According to NFPA:
- If you have a reported fire in your home, the risk of dying decreases by about 80 percent when sprinklers are present.
- Sprinklers reduce direct property damage by about 70 percent per fire.
- Research shows that when sprinklers were present during a fire, the fire is kept to the room of origin 97 percent of the time.
- Roughly 85 percent of the time, just one sprinkler operates during a fire.
- Each individual sprinkler is designed and calibrated to go off only when it senses a significant heat change.
- Only the sprinkler closest to the fire will activate, spraying water directly on the fire.
The early activation of the sprinkler system contains the fire before it has time to grow, and most of the time extinguishes the fire prior to the fire departments arrival. This minimizes the production of deadly carbon monoxide gas, the primary cause of fire deaths. This also reduces fire and smoke damage throughout the home, helping to protect the structure and its contents.
When both fire sprinkler systems and smoke alarms are installed in a home, the risk of dying in a fire is reduced by 82%, when compared to a residence without either.