NFPA Journal - September/October 2019 - 60

Outreach by Lorraine Carli

ADVOCACY,
LEGISLATION,
AND PUBLIC
EDUCATION

Great Escapes
THIS YEAR'S FIRE PREVENTION WEEK THEME EMPHASIZES THE NEED FOR FAMILIES
TO SAVE THEMSELVES IN THE EVENT OF A HOME FIRE

arlier this summer, NFPA

combustible furnishings). As a result,
announced that the theme
if a fire strikes, occupants could have
for the 2019 Fire Prevention
as little as two minutes to escape-a
Week, which takes place
task made even harder amid thick,
October 6-12, would be
blinding smoke that can make it nearly
"Not Every Hero Wears a Cape. Plan and
impossible to find your way out of a
Practice Your Escape."
burning home.
As you might imagine, a lot of work
This year's theme is intended to
goes into choosing the FPW theme each
drive home those startling facts and
year. The process begins nearly a year
to provide people with simple tools to
in advance and involves conversations
keep them and their families safe. The
with internal and external folks, as well
theme encourages residents to be their
as a review of key fire data to find areas
own heroes by developing and pracwhere we might achieve the greatest
ticing a home escape plan with two
With home fires
impact. The idea is to find a topic that is
essential elements: A drawn-out floor
becoming deadly so
actionable, one that will resonate with
plan identifying two ways out of each
quickly, the fire
audiences of all ages, and one that will
room in case one is blocked by smoke or
service may not be
excite fire safety professionals to share
fire, and a family meeting place located
able to get there in
it. Above all, it must tackle a challenging
a safe distance from the home where
time to assist a family
aspect of the fire problem that is critical
everyone can go and be accounted for.
in need. Everyone has
for saving lives.
In creating this map, families should
to do their part and
To see why home fire escape planning
make sure they have working smoke
be prepared to save
emerged as the choice for 2019, and why
alarms on every level of the home,
themselves.
it's crucial that public educators chaminside and outside of each sleeping area.
pion it, all you have to do is look at
They should also check to see that all
the news. In June, the same month we
exits are free of clutter or furniture; if
announced our theme, two fires struck
any obstructions exist, they should be
hours apart in neighboring Ohio councleared away so that nothing prevents
ties, killing six people, including four children. A week later, occupants from getting out. Families should practice escapa home fire in Wisconsin claimed another six lives-four chil- ing from their home, and use a stopwatch to determine how
dren ranging in age from 10 months to seven years, and two quickly they can get out.
adults in their 30s. In all three instances, fast-moving fires left
With home fires becoming deadly so quickly, the fire service
the victims with very little time to make it out alive.
may not be able to get there in time to assist a family in need
Though tragic, these events are not anomalies. In fact, the of help. In that case, everyone has to do their part and be
number of home fire deaths in the United States each year prepared to save themselves and those they care about. Be your
has started to tick up recently, increasing 6 percent on aver- own hero this year for Fire Prevention Week and teach others
age over the five-year period between 2013 and 2017, compared to be heroes. We need far fewer news stories about people who
to the five years before. This troubling trend has a lot to do couldn't escape fast enough.
with the fact that today's home fires burn faster than ever
To learn much more about home fire escape planning, visit
before. This is due to the way homes are built (i.e., open firepreventionweek.org.
floor plans and unprotected lightweight construction) and
what we are putting inside them (mainly synthetic, highly LORRAINE CARLI is vice president of outreach and advocacy for NFPA.

60 | NFPA JOURNAL * S E P T E M B E R / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 9

MICHAEL HOEWELER

http://www.firepreventionweek.org

NFPA Journal - September/October 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NFPA Journal - September/October 2019