Travis County Chief Fire Marshal Tony Callaway announces that October 6-12, 2019 is National Fire Prevention Week™.
This year’s theme is:
Not Every Hero Wears a Cape. Plan and Practice Your Escape!™
The Travis County Fire Marshal’s Office reminds all residents of Travis County that this year’s Fire Prevention Week campaign is “Not Every Hero Wears a Cape. Plan and Practice Your Escape!” This national campaign from the National Fire Prevention Association (NFPA) works to educate everyone about the small but important actions they can take to keep themselves and those around them safe.
NFPA statistics show that in 2017 U.S. fire departments responded to 357,000 home structure fires. These fires caused 2,630 fire deaths and 10,600 fire injuries. On average, seven people died in a fire in a home per day during 2012 to 2016.
Will Boettner, Fire Education Outreach Coordinator states “These sobering numbers show that today’s homes tend to burn faster and that you may only have 1-2 minutes to escape safely after the smoke alarm sounds”. House fires continue to threaten the safety of Travis County residents since today’s homes burn faster than ever before. Knowing what to do in the event of a fire is critical to saving lives and preventing injuries. “In a typical home fire, you may have as little as one to two minutes to escape safely from the time the smoke alarm sounds.”
Escape planning and practice can help you make the most of the time you have, giving everyone enough time to get out.” Your plan should include a map of your home that shows two exits from every room (a window or a door works) and the path from each exit to the outside. It is also very important to designate a meeting place for everyone that is away from the house and safe. Your map should also show the location of all smoke alarms – and if you don’t have smoke alarms, install some.
Knowing what to do in the event of a fire can help you and your family escape quickly and safely. Practice your plan at least twice a year so that everyone in your house knows what to do in a fire and make sure everyone knows how to dial 9-1-1.
REMEMBER: When the smoke alarm sounds – it’s too late to plan!
If you need help planning, contact Will Boettner (512) 763-9686 at the Travis County Fire Marshal’s Office for assistance. For more information, visit or www.fpw.org.
View the Fire Prevention Week 2019 flyer.
