Fire Safety Prevention

The Fairmount Fire Department is very conscious about the issues of Fire Safety and Prevention. Led by Captain Chris Unz, the Fire Prevention section of the Fairmount Fire Department educates children as well as adults by going to Schools, Daycare Centers, and Churches as well as doing an In – House program at the firehouse with our Annual Open House held in October, and with events out in the community at local businesses promoting fire safety and awareness. If you are located inside the Fairmount Fire Department District, and would like us to come to your School, Church, Youth Group, Daycare Center, or you are interested in stopping by the Firehouse, just give us a call at (315) 487-5811.

There are several ways to protect yourself, your family, and your community.

Practice EDITH – Exit Drills In The Home. Make sure that your entire family knows the escape route out of your home in case of an emergency, as well as a safe meeting point once you are out of the building. Practice this as many times as possible to keep your family aware and safe in an emergency situation.

Smoke Alarms – Smoke alarms are crucial to alert you incase you are not near a problem that may occur, or you are sleeping and in danger. There should be at least 1 smoke alarm on every level of your home or apartment, as well as one near the sleeping areas. Make sure you change the batteries in this device at least once a year and test them monthly to ensure they are working properly. Please also make sure that there is no dust or dirt in the alarm, these can cause it to malfunction if not properly maintained. Smoke alarms also have a lifespan of 10-15 years depending on the manufacturer. Please note this and replace them accordingly! Carbon Monoxide Alarms – Carbon Monoxide alarms are another crucial and necessary tool to have inside your home. These can alert you to increased levels of carbon monoxide – a colorless, odorless, invisible, tasteless gas that can be extremely harmful. You should have at least one of these in your residence. If you have a detector and it goes off, get everyone out of the house immediately and call 911. There may or not be a problem in your home, but since the gas is very harmful and you can not tell if it is around you, it is better to have the problem checked by the fire department. Be cautious when using a vehicle in a garage attatched to your home. Running this vehicle without proper ventilation (garage door open) can cause elevated levels of carbon monoxide in your home.

Fire Extinguisher

It is always best to have fire extinguishers easily accessible in your home in case of an emergency. These must be checked for a proper charge by checking the meter on the nozzle of the extinguisher. There are many types of fire extinguishers, and you can purchase an extinguisher that has a specific one-class rating. However, there are also class ABC extinguishers available that will protect any class of fire, and they are the best type to have in your home to protect you. This tells you that the extinguisher can handle three (3) different classes of fire. The classes of fire are as follows:

• Class A fires are considered wood and paper.
• Class B fires are considered flammable liquids such as gasoline and oil.
• Class C fires are anything that involves electrically energized fires involving electrical equipment such as a television, lamp, or oven.

Chimney and wood stove safety

Chimney fires and problems are a common occurance. If you have a fireplace, or wood stove that heats your home, please be sure that the chimney is cleaned and checked yearly. Creosote (thick, black residue that is left from burning wood) can clog chimneys and let dangerous gases enter your home. Chimneys are also a source of fire. The mortar or lining inside a chimney can crack and wear away with time, as well as with heat that is inside the chimney. Cracks inside chimneys can cause a fire to spread inside the walls, attics, crawl spaces and floors of your home. Any wood stove that has a chimney with elbows in it, it is very dangerous and ashes and other buildup is very common inside those areas and poses a very large possibility of fire. Keep tree branches and leaves at least 15 feet away from the top of your chimney. Install a chimney cap to ensure debris and animals stay out of your chimney. Inside, make sure you have a fireplace screen, or doors closed to ensure that hot embers and ashes don’t get on carpet. Never leave fires unattended.

Road safety

If you hear or see an emergency vehicle coming toward you, please immediately pull over to the right side of the roadway so that we can get through safely and get to the people that need our help. We appreciate your kindness!

If your children see or hear a fire truck, police car, or ambulance coming towards you, stay away from the road. It is very dangerous for you with other cars on the roadway, as well as our noisy trucks with sirens and horns going to warn people of an emergency in the area. It is fine to watch, but please make sure it’s at a safe distance!

Building safety

If you are way from home at a hospital, school, doctor’s office, mall, movie theater, store, restaurant, etc. and the fire alarm sounds, please make your way to the nearest emergency exit.

Space Heaters

If you use a space heater in your home, it is important that it is at least 3 feet away from any carpeting, draperies, curtains, clothing, towels, and anything combustible. The heat given off from the heater can ignite other items in the room very quickly.

Clothes Dryers

Remember to clean the lint trap before each time the dryer is used. Also, cleaning kits are sold that include brushes to get down inside the lint trap, where the screen sits to better clean that. Also ensure that the ventilation pipe goes directly outside of your home and is not loose, cracked, or damaged. Also clean this frequently to ensure there is no buildup inside it. The vent housing on the outside your home can also become home to bird nests, or insect nests. Also ensure the dryer is at least 18 inches away from the wall when operating. Never leave home with clothes in your washer, and especially your dryer.

Smoking

Never smoke in your bedroom. Never smoke when you are tired and feel like you are going to fall asleep. If you dump ashes from an ashtray inside a garbage can, ensure that they are moistened to prevent any chance of creating a fire inside a garbage can.

Fire Hydrants

If there is a fire hydrant near your home, please help us by keeping it clear of bushes, flowers, and during our favorite season, winter the snow. You never know when it will be needed! Thank you!

Children’s Safety

Don’t play with matches or lighters! This is very dangerous and you can easily burn yourself without even touching the flame, a lighter gets very hot around the metal outside. You can also cause a lot of damage to your house, or your friend’s house, your car, and your toys! Matches and lighters are not toys!