Fire Escape Planning and Practice Urged With 'Two Ways Out'

October is Fire Prevention Month, which affords a great reason for families to sit down together to form a two-ways-out escape plan should a fire strike close to home. That's the word from local firefighters, who are teaming with the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) to urge residents to think ahead.

This year's theme — "Have Two Ways Out!" — brings to focus the importance of fire-escape planning and practice.

First, the reported facts:

• Tampa Bay area firefighters and their peers nationwide collectively responsded to 369,500 home structure fires in 2010. The fires caused 13,350 civilian injuries, 2,640 civilian deaths and $6.9 billion in direct damages.

• "One home structure was reported every 85 seconds in 2010," according to Debra Sue Warshefski, a Tampa Fire Rescue spokesperson, in a news release about National Fire Prevention Month. She added:

"Fire is unpredictable and moves faster than most people realize. Having a tried-and-true escape plan with two ways out is essential to ensuring your family's safety should fire break out in your home. Prepare now, before the emergency!"

Based on reported tips from Tampa Fire Rescue, each family's escape plan should be easily understood by both kids and adults and should include the following steps:

• Map out your home. For every room, mark both a door and a window through which you can escape.

• Choose a site outside, in front of your home, where everyone can meet once they've escaped the burning building. Draw a picture of this outside meeting place on the escape plan. Determine a second site to use, in case the first site is not available.

• Write on the plan the emergency telephone number for the fire department.

• Post the escape plan in a highly visible location, such as on the door to the refrigerator.

• At least twice a year have a fire drill to ensure that everyone knows and understands the plan. Everyone living in the home should participate. 

• Practice the escape plan after a grown-up sounds the smoke alarm.

• To ensure you remember to practice, do so every time you test and change the batteries in your smoke alarm (which should be done twice a year) or peg the drills to holidays, family birthdays or anniversaries.