Practice Fire Safety! Valuable Fire Safety Tips from the Brewster Fire Department

The Brewster Fire Department Fire Prevention Bureau hopes everyone is having a safe and happy summer!  During this busy time, we would like to remind all residents and visitors of some important fire safety tips from the National Fire Protection Association:   1.  Watch your cooking—Stay in the kitchen when you are frying, grilling, or broiling food.  If you must leave, even for a short time, turn off the stove.  If you are simmering, baking, roasting, or boiling food, check it regularly and remain in the home while food is cooking and use a timer.   2.  Give space heaters space—Keep fixed and portable space heaters at least three feet from anything that can burn.  Turn off heaters when you leave the room or go to sleep.   3.  Smoke outside—Ask smokers to smoke outside.  Have sturdy, deep ashtrays for smokers.   4.  Keep matches and lighters out of reach—Keep matches and lighters up high, out of the reach of children, preferably in a cabinet with a child lock.   5.  Inspect electrical cords—Replace cords that are cracked, damaged, have broken plugs or loose connections. Do not place extension cords under rugs or doorways and use only Underwriter Laboratories (UL) approved cords of the appropriate size.   6.  Be extremely careful when using candles—Keep candles at least one foot from anything that can burn. Blow out candles when you leave the room or go to sleep.   7.  Have a home fire escape plan—Make a home fire escape plan and practice it with the entire family at least twice a year.   8.  Install & maintain smoke alarms—Install smoke alarms on every level of your home, outside all sleeping areas.  For assistance in determining proper locations for detectors, please contact us!     9.​Install and maintain carbon monoxide detectors-carbon monoxide is a colorless and odorless gas known as the “Silent Killer” It is invisible when present in your home. To prevent carbon monoxide emergencies install carbon monoxide detectors in your home. For assistance in determining proper locations for detectors, please contact us!   10. Test smoke alarms—Test smoke alarms at least once a month and replace conventional batteries once a year or when the alarm “chirps” to tell you the battery is low.  Replace any smoke alarm that is more than 10 years old.   11. Install sprinklers—If you are building or remodeling your home, install residential fire sprinklers.  Sprinklers can contain, and may even extinguish a fire in your home in less time than it would take the fire department to arrive. Think about adding residential sprinklers to ensure the safety of your loved ones!   **visit www.nfpa.org/safetytips to learn more and access free downloadable resources.