Wildfires have once again become a major concern in California due to the L.A. wildfires and the Otay fire that damaged a massive part of the communities, destroying buildings, homes, cars, injuring people, and even resulting in the death of 29 people. Since these fires can be catastrophic, knowing about fire safety is necessary and, oftentimes, families don’t even have a fire extinguisher or a fire safety plan. At Preuss, the safety of students is important both inside school and outside of school. In order to stay safe, students and their families must know what to do during a fire emergency and what steps to take in order to prevent them.
Preuss students should put in place preventative measures beforehand in order to try and prevent fires in homes or places where fires might spread fast. These actions can include keeping combustible or flammable materials away in a secure location, turning off stoves when not in use, making sure wires and outlets aren’t broken or torn, and cooking carefully with liquids like oil, which are highly flammable. These preventative measures help prevent fires from starting in homes and possible spreading to other areas.
Knowing what to do during a fire is also important in addition to preventative measures. One of the most important actions is to have an escape route. Having a fire escape route helps to have other ways of exiting a building in case the front door is blocked off. Knowing other ways of exiting is incredibly important because fires cause a build up of carbon monoxide, a deadly gas which can have detrimental effects on not just the body but the brain as well, in the worst cases it results in death and knowing where to escape from can minimize the time in which the body is exposed to carbon monoxide.
In addition to a fire escape plan, a smoke detector and a carbon monoxide detector are good ways to be ready for a fire. A smoke detector is important in a scenario where people might be asleep. If the detector goes off, it will trigger an alarm which would then wake up anyone who was asleep which could mean the difference between escaping or being stuck inside. Carbon monoxide detectors, on the other hand, are also important to have because of the dangers of carbon monoxide. Carbon monoxide is a byproduct of fires, and inhaling it can cause death, however a detector helps to alert people when a dangerous amount of it builds up which can prevent damage from being done to their bodies.
Making sure that a fire extinguisher is always available is incredibly important as well. Fire extinguishers contain a solution which prevents the chemical reactions that cause a fire. Fire extinguishers can be classified into four different categories: A, B, C, D, and K. Knowing what type of fire extinguisher is needed is an important action to take as a preventative measure. A class fire extinguisher can put out any ordinary combustible like wood and paper. Class B fire extinguishers are good for putting out combustible liquids, like gasoline or greases. Class C extinguishers can put out electrical fires and class D extinguishers can put out fires caused by metals. Class K fire extinguishers help to put out fires caused by materials used in cooking.
Fire safety is important because it helps put in place preventative measures to protect people, and homes. Knowing about fire safety is incredibly important for the safety of Preuss students and their families.
