Former Fire Chief reminds residents that many fires can be prevented before they start
With many of our local fire departments hosting open houses and fire prevention week having passed recently, retired Selkirk fire chief Ted Wozny went back to the basics of fire prevention to help prepare our residents before disaster strikes.
Smoke and carbon monoxide detectors
Smoke and carbon monoxide detectors are one of the first recommendations made by fire departments when it comes to keeping residents safe.
“[Without a detector] how are you woken up? You’re woken up when the blaze wakes you up not because of the smoke,” said Wozny.
Detector placement should also be a high priority. Smoke rises so detectors should be placed at the high points of the home. Wozny particularly recommends the ceilings and away from corners as smoke can swirl and miss the corners of a room.
Residents can also consider, depending on their situation, getting more than the minimum number of detectors for their home.
An example that Wozny gives is a teenager who uses heat hairstyling tools and likes to keep their door closed might be a good candidate to have a detector in their room to make sure that a potential fire is detected promptly. This is a recommendation he’s given to his own family members.
He also reminds residents that they should make sure to change the batteries in their detectors if they haven’t in the past six months.
In addition you can check your detector batteries using the test button.
Fire extinguishers
Residents should make sure that their homes are equipped with fire extinguishers so that a small fire can be dealt with before it becomes large.
Wozny said that previously the fire department actually had demonstrations where a small fire was set up and residents were instructed on how to use a fire extinguisher.
Though this isn’t the kind of demonstration that we regularly see nowadays, Wozny says that fire extinguishers can be a bit tricky to operate.
“It’s not a magic powder. It’s a powder that separates the oxygen from the fire and smothers,” said Wozny.
Standing back and sweeping the fire extinguisher over the fire instead of directly onto it are some of the tips that Wozny suggested but ultimately, he says that if you aren’t able to use the extinguisher safely the best thing to do is to get out and call the fire department.
The placement of the extinguisher is also something that should be considered.
“[I’ve heard,] ‘I bought my extinguisher and I got it right down by the furnace.’ You’re never to go into a burning house then downstairs and opening doors and giving the fire oxygen to flare up only to look for an extinguisher in a cupboard where you’re not even sure which one. As far as I’m concerned, [if you don’t have an accessible one] you don’t have an extinguisher,” Wozny said.
Kitchen Fires
Wozny says that many kitchen fires take place because of overheating and not paying attention while cooking can be a factor.
“[I once told my mom] when you’re on that stove, you don’t go and sit in a chair like that lady down the hall did when we had to go and put out the fire in their house. You don’t sit there because [you’re nodding off in] 15 minutes. You sit at the stove,” he said.
He also reminds people that even if they don’t use all of their elements on their stove nothing should be put on them and you shouldn’t store things in the oven. It only takes accidentally pressing the wrong nob for your cereal box to catch fire.
Escape plans
Escape plans are very important and all family members can be involved. Wozny says that one component of an escape place that is essential is a meeting destination.
“Your kids run out and one goes one way, one goes another way, and you run out not in the same direction,” he said.
This is more important than just not finding each other, however, Wozny said he’s had situations where a family member went to a neighbour’s home and another member thought they were still in their home which meant firefighters almost risked their safety going in to look for them.
With many years of firefighting under his belt, Wozny has a vast array of advice and fire prevention knowledge and he believes that our fire departments are incredibly capable of fighting fires but he also agrees that the best way to keep safe is to prepare before a fire starts.
