OLATHE, Kan. — Fire departments across the Kansas City metropolitan area warn you have less time to get out of a house fire today than 30 years ago. The Olathe, Kansas, Fire Department says synthetics in furniture and construction materials combined with the popularity of an open floor plan make it easier for fire to spread. As a result, fire departments are spreading the message that everyone should create and practice a fire escape plan.
At the Old Settlers Days festival this weekend, the Olathe Fire Department will share its two pieces of advice for families:
- Know two ways out of every room in your home.
- "Close before you doze." Close the door to your bedroom before you go to sleep. The door could keep a fire outside your bedroom from entering, or at least keep it at bay for a while longer.
"You can't be safe enough when it comes to fire," said Tara Rafferty, a mother of three in Olathe.
She recently made upgrades to her house, but learned there is more she can do.
"It's terrifying. We just invested in a home security system with carbon monoxide detectors and new fire detectors and glass-break detectors. We thought that was good enough," Rafferty said.
Olathe's fire education specialist Kristin Peterson visited the Rafferty's home and helped the family come up with a plan. A lot of it has to do with teaching the three young children what to do when a the house is on fire.
Peterson said there should be a location outside the home where everyone can meet after escaping the house in an emergency.
Her advice is to have a smoke alarm in each room and in the hallway outside each bedroom. On top of that, Peterson said to make sure all smoke detectors in a home are connected to one another.
"If you just have battery-operated smoke alarms that don't talk to one another, it will take that smoke getting all the way to your bedroom for your smoke alarm to go off," she said.
Peterson suggested practicing your fire escape plan with the smoke alarms going off.
Rafferty said the tips make her feel more confident.
"The more we practice it as a family, it will become second nature," she said.
The fire department added that families can practice different scenarios; a fire in the bedroom one day and a fire in the kitchen the next time.
—
