PREVENT FIRES AND BE SAFE

12/8/2017 (Permalink)

We are approaching the season of the year when families gather, and long-separated cousins enjoy hours of play as adults converse and catch up. As we retreat into our cozy homes and get a roaring fire going on the hearth, a dose of caution is wise. It takes only a brief period of inattention for a cheery fire to turn into a destructive force. We know this well because our technicians train to turn precisely this type of tragedy around fast. 

 
Nearly 50,000 fires a year involve one or a group of individuals playing with fire. Families are not immune to this preventable cause of of fire damages.  Most of the blazes involve children finding fire starters such as matches and lighters. More than 7000 home fires annually have been reported due to children experimenting with fire. Nearly 40 percent of these fires start in the bedroom, likely as the child or children play with a box of matches or a lighter in secret. About 43 percent of the fires were set by children under the age of 6.
 
SERVPRO of Medina County  urges our community to be aware of the risk of fire held in little hands. We are skilled and experienced in cleaning surfaces and restoring structures after a fire. Fire damage remediation is a core service for our company, but no one wants to live through the terror and potential for serious harm or even death that a home fire brings.
 
Keep matches and lighters locked up or in an inaccessible place at all times, but be vigilant when you invite guests over as they may bring their own firestarters and negligently leave them within reach of the children also attending the event. Your choice to burn candles or have a fire going in the fireplace requires that you also make sure all safety precautions are taken. A log that rolls out if a curious tyke knocks it with a poker and an upended candle are genuine fire risks as well.
 
If a fire does break out, get your friends and loved ones out of the home as soon as possible. Once the fire is extinguished and the authorities permit, crews can arrive with fully equipped vehicles to assess the damage and begin putting your life back together again.