FireAngel pledge support to Fire Kills Campaign

The Home Office has developed the Fire Kills Campaign in partnership with the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) and other local fire and rescue services to promote fire safety, highlight everyday fire hazards, and encourage people to have working smoke alarms on every floor.

The campaign launched on the 30th October and will be supported with a featured TV advert as well as radio, video, and digital content that highlights known fire risks including candles and leaving cooking utensils unattended. With timelines the campaign will run until the 31st of March 2024.

FireAngel are proud to help pledge support to this campaign with statistics from Gov UK showing that people are 10 times more likely to die from a fire if they don’t have a working smoke alarm on every floor of their home.

The FRS attended 622,173 incidents in the year ending March 2023 which was a 7.8% increase compared to the previous year. The Fire Kills campaign this year focuses on 5 key themes.

Candles

With candles you should make sure they are kept away from flammable materials such as curtains, they should be put out when you leave the room and make sure they’re out completely at night. Place candles on a stable surface, out of the reach of pets and children, and always put scented candles in a heat-resistant holder.

To keep you and your loved ones safe, make sure you have a working smoke alarm on every floor of your home and test monthly.

Cooking

It is important to take extra care around the kitchen as according to RBFRS, half of accidental fires in the home start in the kitchen. To help you stay safe in the kitchen, here are 12 top tips:

1. Take care if you need to leave the kitchen whilst cooking and take pans off the heat or turn them down to avoid risk
2. If a pan catches fire, don’t take any risks – get out, stay out, and call 999
3. Double check the hob and oven is off when you’ve finished cooking
4. Keep tea towels and cloths away from the cooker and hob
5. Take care if you’re wearing loose clothing – this can easily catch fire.
6. Avoid leaving children in the kitchen alone when cooking and keep matches and saucepan handles out of their reach to keep them safe
7. Take care with electrics – keep leads and appliances away from water and place grills and toasters away from curtains and kitchen rolls
8. Keep your equipment clean and in good working order – a build-up of fat and grease can ignite a fire
9. Don’t cook after drinking alcohol
10. Hot oil can catch fire easily – be careful that it doesn’t overheat
11. Never throw water on a chip pan fire
12. Make sure you have a working heat alarm in your kitchen and test it weekly

Cigarettes

If you’re smoking inside your home, always make sure cigarettes are properly extinguished and avoid smoking in bed. It’s much safer to smoke outside, but make sure cigarettes are put right out and disposed of properly  – never throw cigarette butts from a balcony.

Use deep, heavy ashtrays that can’t tip over, add a small drop of water to the ashtray and stub cigarettes out properly. Always empty ashtrays carefully. Make sure smoking materials are out, cold and, preferably wet them before throwing them into a bin – never use a wastepaper basket.

Plugs

Over half of all accidental fires are caused by electricity with 9/10 electrical fires caused by electrical products. Tips for keeping safe from electrical fires come from Humberside Fire & Rescue:

1. Make sure you can’t see any coloured wires between the plug and the power lead
2. Make sure wires are held firmly in place inside the plug
3. Use sockets safely, it’s better to use a bar adaptor for this
4. Only use one adaptor per socket

Heaters

Portable heaters that are used to dry clothes, left too close to items such as bedding, blankets, or paperwork can catch light and cause a fire. Some kinds of heaters can also present a carbon monoxide (CO) risk, which can be fatal. Known as ‘The Silent Killer’, CO is a highly poisonous gas that cannot be seen, smelt, or tasted.

To ensure you’re keeping warm safely at home, make sure heaters are well maintained, in good working order and aren’t on a recall list. Never install, repair, or service appliances yourself. Make sure anyone who does is registered with the Gas Safe Register (for gas appliances), the Heating Equipment Testing and Approval Scheme (for solid fuel appliances), or the Oil Firing Technical Association (for oil appliances). Don’t take risks with old heaters – if it’s electrical and getting older, get it tested by a qualified electrician or buy a new one.

Where appropriate, secure heaters against a wall to stop them from falling over, or fit wall-mounted heaters. Keep heaters well away from clothes, curtains, and furniture and never use them for drying clothes.

Smoke Alarms

For a rapid reaction to fire, make sure you have working smoke alarms fitted on all levels of your home or your loved one’s. With the majority of house-fire related fatalities occurring between the hours of 10pm-6am, working smoke alarms are imperative to improving the overall level of safety in your home and can provide vital time to escape.

Keep your eyes peeled on our social pages over the next few months as we continue to support the Fire Kills campaign, which will run until the 31st of March. You can help show your support using the hashtag #FireKills.