Hints & tips
Smoke Detectors and Fire Safety
According to safety rules you're twice as likely to die at home during a fire if you haven't got a fire alarm. Therefore if you have taken the batteries out because the toaster keeps setting it off think about putting them back in.
A fire at home is something that people expect to never happen until there is a house fire in your neighbourhood that kills a family. A smoke detector costs less than £5, and you can get them in the supermarket or high street stores. There are no excuses for not having at least one in your home! If your smoke alarm is beeping, it generally means it needs new batteries.
It's also very important to know all the ways in which a fire can start. Electric circuits can be deadly in older houses due to wear and tear and in new houses because of overloading and rapid, and cheap fitting. Plugs can be overloaded by TVs, videos, DVD players, stereos, mobile phone chargers, hairdryers and home PC's to name a few, so it's no wonder that the sockets overheat and connections melt. In some houses you can find nearly all of those things in one teenagers room!
Make sure that you use a multi socket extension lead so that only one plug goes into the wall socket and one plug per socket on the lead. You can get up to eight sockets on an extension lead so there's no excuse. However, before you go to bed each night, it would be a good idea to do a plug check. If you leave things switched on at the wall or even on standby, they are still using an electric current and are therefore seen as 'live', and are also costing you money. A quarter of all people killed in home fires are asleep at the time, so by turning all plugs and lights off properly you will be seriously reducing the risks.
If you use matches or a lighter for your oven, fire or candles, then keep them out of reach of children and preferably locked up in a cupboard. There is nothing more fascinating than fire for children, so you must make sure that you warn them of the dangers and NEVER leave a naked flame unattended or without a fireguard.
The Most Dangerous Room for Fires:
The most dangerous room for fires is by far the kitchen. Nearly two thirds of all domestic fires happen because of cooking or leaving flames unattended, which is high. Due to these types of fires, roughly 7,000 people are injured in kitchen fires each year, and that number doesn't include the people who are killed. There are of course many things plugged in that you can't really unplug, such as the fridge and freezer, so make sure that the sockets are given a check over and are safety approved by a qualified electrician.
Even though all of these things sound obvious to us, they are not necessarily obvious to a child, so make sure that you don't leave or use hot things such as toaster near curtains, don't leave tea towels or wooden spoons on hot hobs, don't lean over hot pans to get something and check that things like ovens haven't been left on.
The kitchen is definitely a place for a smoke detector and if you can, a fire blanket on the wall.
It is important to ask yourself if you have a smoke alarm and fire extinguisher, if you've planned how you would evacuate your house in the event of a fire downstairs, and if your children and other family members know what to do in the case of a fire. Remember planning ahead costs nothing and in the unlikely event of a fire could save lives.
Preventing Electrical Accidents with Children:
Our main source of energy is in fact electricity, but it is certainly a hazard around the home to babies, children and even adults. The main problem with electricity is that it can't be seen, heard or smelt, but can be felt when touched!
If you live in a modern home, then it will almost certainly be fitted with a special device, which will prevent your child from suffering an electric shock. This happens by detecting if they have touched a live wire and then tripping the current. These are great devices and have saved thousands of lives. These devices are known as RCD's or Earth Leakage Circuit Breakers. You can have these fitted in your house by a qualified electrician. You can also buy them for the garden as a device that you plug into a socket, and then you can plug your lawnmower or hedge trimmer into, so if you cut the cable and a toddler touches the cable, then the device will trip.
Electrical accidents do happen, and children will touch wall outlets and bite on electrical cords. To prevent them from being at risk, we can follow these tips:
- Cover all electrical outlets with plug socket guards. They are cheap and easily obtainable.
- Place lamps and appliance cords out of a child's reach, such as behind heavy furniture.
- Make sure that a child cannot pull the plug out of appliances such as portable stereos, where the plug is pushed into the rear. If they do this, and then put it into their mouth then this could be deadly serious.
- Always check appliances and cables for damage.
- If you're not qualified, then do not mess with electricity. If it is not visible, you do not know what could happen. If in doubt, call for a qualified electrician.
If you think that your child has had a shock then check them for any burns, a blackened mark or blisters at the point of contact and the point of exit for the electricity. If the shock is more serious, such as biting through an electrical cable, your child could be knocked unconscious and their heart could even stop beating. If this happens, then you must turn off the power immediately and call for an ambulance and administer CPR.
You should contact your doctor or hospital to have your child checked over if they have had any type of electrical shock, because even the smallest shocks could cause internal injury.