Lakeshore Advance, 2011-10-12, Page 19OCTOBER 9-15 IS FIRE PREVENTION WEEK
Protect your family from fire
Lakeshore Advance
Canada's leading
!child safety advocacy
organization wants to
support parents to
help them take greater
responsibility for their
kids' fire and burn
safety.
Safe Kids Canada,
through its partner-
ship with more than
2,000 community
organizations across
the country, has
announced plans to
create a new national
fire safety outreach
program. On average,
19 children aged 14
and under are killed by
fire or smoke each year
in Canada. Nearly 600 are
hospitalized.
News of the initiative comes as Fire
Prevention Week gets set to kick off on
October 9th. This year's Fire Preven-
tion Week theme is "Protect Your
Family Frorn Fire."
"Children are most vulnerable
when fire strikes. No matter their age,
a child's safety ultimately rests with
their parents," says Pamela Fuselli,
executive director, Safe Kids Canada.
"It is a parent's responsibility to give
their children every possible chance
of survival from smoke and fire. So a
Some adtlitlonal
big part of our education effort
will focus on preventative steps
parents must take."
The Safe Kids Canada
announcement comes as a result
of an unprecedented five-year,
North America -wide partner-
ship with market -leading smoke
alarm and home safety product
manufacturer Kidde. The com-
pany already supports numer-
ous public education programs
with fire departments and fire
safety organizations and views
broadening that commitment
with Safe Kids Canada as a natu-
ral extension.
"With fire safety, complacency
leads to tragedy," says Carol !lel-
ler, a home safety specialist with
Kidde, "in two of every three
fires where there are fatalities,
investigators find no working
smoke alarms. Hither the batteries are missing or expired,
or the smoke alarm has been removed from the ceiling or
was never installed at all. It's a parent's duty to equip the
home with fire safety devices and to equip their kids with
fire safety knowledge. 'Ibis will be the core of our Kidde for
Kids program with Safe Kids Canada."
Burn prevention is a key area of focus. I)r. Joel Fish,
medical director, Burns Program at Toronto's 1lospital for
Sick Children sees first-hand the consequences of children
who did not have the benefit of the best possible protec-
tion from fire at home.
"Fires can lead to the worst burns imaginable. They
leave life-long scars, both physical and emotional," says
Dr. Fish. "With more education about prevention steps, as
well as awareness of certain areas of the home more prone
You have lets than three minutes to escape
a Am. .% when smoke alums sound, every-
one the family must know what to do and
where to o.
Evacuating a burping or unoke-fUled home
diffetent detnends an parents depend -
on the swot** their kids. SE PREPARED.
to children NEVER to go back into a
bks � house to retrieve pets or personal
Install one smoke alarm per storey and
outside bedroom& Install tna1d bedrooms if
you sleep with doers closed.
Buy alarms with &Hush button to deal with
fslrealarms. Ibis way you calm silence an alarm
while the smoke or steam clears, but you
remain fully protected in case a real fire breaks
out.
Replace all smoke alarms over 10 years old.
whether baoperated or hardwired into
your home's i xrytricsl system.
Tach children what a smoke alarm sounds
Ilke to reduce @backend tear when It goes off.
As part of the Safe Kids Canada fire safety
outreach, parental resources 'are available on
the Www.estatidscanede ce web site, u well as
www.safeathoeine c
DON'T
FORGET
Test your smoke alarms once a month
and change the batteries at least once a year.
INSTALL SMOKE ALARMS
mum
every home In Ontario
waiting
smoke ohm on
end ouisid•
steeping ..+ac
I q4'" MAW. 4,
Wednesday, October 12, 2011 • Lakeshore Advance 19
to burns and scalds, parents can spare
their children and themselves a life-
time of heartache"
John Caruso is chief fire prevention
officer, City of Vaughan Fire and Res-
cue. Ile says a fire -safe home relies
on two things: properly installed and
working smoke alarms, and, a home
fire escape plan.
"Working smoke alarms double your
chances of escaping a fire, and having
a home escape plan increases your
odds even further," Caruso says. "The
fire escape planning exercise begins
with parents going through the home
with kids in tow, first checking each
and every stroke alarm. Then, sit
down with your kids and draw a floor
plan and map two escape routes out of
every room. Agree on a safe outdoor
meeting place. And then practise that
escape pian twice each year."
The Board of 1 Directors of the
Grand Bend Community i't)Undation
invites you to celebrate (;rand Bend's
COMMUNITY
LEADERS OF
THE DECADE
More than 40 exceptional volunteer leaders will i
recognized at this once -in -a -decade event. Come and
show your appreciation to the people who have made
our (Immunity such a great place to live,
(-T--he Coach House, Hessenland Country Inn
Friday, October 28
Reception at 5:30 pm, dinner at 6:30 pm, cash bar
Dress: Serol -formal
Emcee
Jennifer Mossop
Former television personality and MPP
Tickets $30 per person, including Tapas-style dinner
Tickets are limited, Please RSVP by October2l.
Register for tickets and view the nominee list online at
GrandBendCommunityFoundation.ca
and follow the link to Community Leaders of the Decade
or call 519-238-2190