TESTING YOUR SMOKE ALARM:  The NFPA recommends testing your smoke alarms at least once a month to make sure they are operating.  Test each alarm by pushing the test button and listening for the alarm.  Make sure that everyone in the household knows what the smoke alarm sounds like, especially children.
MAINTAINING YOUR SMOKE ALARM:  Clean smoke alarms at least twice a year.  Make sure you follow the manufacturer's instructions about cleaning.  Cobwebs and dust can usually be removed with a vacuum cleaner attachment.
The NFPA recommends replacing batteries at least once a year or when the alarm chirps, alerting you that the battery is low.
Tip: Replace your batteries when you change your clocks, or on an annual holiday, and note it on your calendar.
Never disable your alarms by removing the batteries for other uses.
Do not install rechargeable batteries in smoke alarms.
Replace smoke alarms at least every 10 years or as needed.
Always follow the manufacturer's instructions for battery replacement.
Tip: Write the date of purchase on the inside of the smoke alarm as a reminder of when to replace it.
Always replace the existing smoke alarms when you move into a new home.
Tip: Pick the same time to test your alarms every month and note it on your calendar so you won't forget.
YOUR FIRE RESPONSE PLAN SHOULD INCLUDE: 
Emergency phone number list
Home safety equipment
Escape plan
WHAT HOME SAFETY EQUIPMENT DO I NEED? 
Smoke alarms are your early warning system in case of a fire.  It is essential to have adequate smoke alarms installed and ideally, a monitored smoke alarm system in place.
Fire extinguishers should be kept and used for only two reasons:
1. To extinguish small fires that you are starting.
2.  To help clear an escape route if a fire is already blocking your path.
In all other cases, get out and let the professional fire fighters do their jobs.
To operate your extinguisher, the National Fire Protection Association recommends following the P-A-S-S technique.
P - Pull out the pin at the top.
A - Aim the nozzle toward the base of the fire.
S - Squeeze the handle to discharge.
S - Sweep the nozzle back and forth at the base of the fire.
ESCAPE LADDERS  should be secured at the window of each bedroom above the ground floor.  Practice the proper way to roll out the ladders and safely descend them.
FLASHLIGHTS should be kept beside every bed in the home.  Most residential fires occur at night, and in the confusion and darkness you may need a flashlight to find your way out.  You may also need it to signal for help if you are trapped inside.
 When people awaken to a fire, they can be disoriented from sleep, smoke and poisonous gasses.  *FEMA

Tip: Make sure to keep fresh batteries in your flashlights and always store them in the same place near the bed.
 FIRST AID KIT   should be assembled and kept stocked.  The Red Cross provides a suggested list of supplies at: http://www.redcross.org/disaster/safety/supplies.html
HOW DO I DEVELOP AN ESCAPE PLAN?    Developing an escape plan is vital to fire safety.  The plan should be understood and practiced by all members of the household.  People are less likely to panic in emergencies if they have practiced and talked about what they should do.
1.  Draw a simple plan of you home on graph paper  (Click here to print graph paper). Draw all the walls, doors, and windows, and label the rooms.
2. Mark two exits for each room.  Use two different colors, one to show the primary exit, and the second to show an alternate exit in case fire blocks the first one.
3. Choose a meeting place in front of your house for everyone to gather and be counted.  Draw this location on your plan.
4. Practice your escape plan periodically both in the daytime and at night with the lights off.  Make sure everyone knows both of the exits for their rooms and the importance of getting to the meeting place as quickly as possible.
ESCAPE GUIDELINES:
Keep bedroom doors closed when you sleep.  Doors act as insulators from fires.
Designate someone to assist infants or family members with mobility limitations.
Make sure all exits are unobstructed and all doors and windows are easy to reach and to open.
Windows and doors with security bars should have quick release devices that allow them to be opened immediately in emergencies.
When an alarm sounds, roll out of the bed and stay low.
Cover your mouth and crawl to the nearest exit.
If you exit is a door, do not open it without testing it with the back of your hand to see if it is hot.  If the door is hot to the touch use and alternate exit.
If the door is not hot to the touch, brace your foot against the inside of the door and open it 1 to 2 inches (gases can cause pressure that could force the door open).  If the air is warm from behind the door, close the door and use an alternate exit.
To delay the spread of fire, close doors behind you as you escape.
Never panic and jump from a high window.  If you must exit without an escape ladder, hang from the window sill by your hands to reduce the drop to the ground.
Never go back into a burning building.
Gather at the selected meeting place and count all family members; then send someone to a neighbor's house to call the fire department.
Do not try to fight the fire.  Let professional fire fighters do their jobs.

WHAT SHOULD I TEACH CHILDREN ABOUT FIRE SAFETY?  Show children pictures of fire fighters or visit a fire station to help ease children's fears.  Afire suit and a mask can be frightening, and children may try to hide from a fire fighter in full protective gear.
Make sure children know what your smoke alarm sounds like.
Make sure everyone knows how to dial 911 in an emergency.
Discuss the importance of not stopping to look for pets or possessions before escaping the fire.
Teach children never to reenter the house after they have escaped and never to hide inside the house if there is a fire.
Make sure they clearly understand the exit routes, safety precautions and the importance of the meeting location.
WHAT IS "STOP, DROP AND ROLL? It is extremely important to know what to do if your clothes catch on fire as you are trying to escape.  Never run.  It will increase the oxygen getting to the fire and speed the burning.  Instead, follow these steps:
Stop - Do not run or stand up if your clothes are on fire.
Drop - Keep calm, and quickly drop to the ground.
Roll - Cover your face with your hands and smother the flames by rolling over and over until the fire is out.
If you see someone else on fire, roll the victim in a coat, blanket or rug.  The principle is the same: Smother the flames to put out the fire.
WHY IS PRACTICING AN ESCAPE PLAN IMPORTANT?  It is easy to panic in an emergency.  Practicing an escape plan will help ensure that everyone will be able to react quickly and safely if a fire occurs.  It is important to practice your escape plan periodically with your entire family.  Remember that smoke is thick and dark.  Practice finding your exits at night with the lights off.  Don't forget to stay low and check doors for heat as part of you rehearsal.  Stress the importance of everyone getting to the meeting location as quickly as possible.
Everyone, including preschoolers,  can be taught the basics of fire safety.  *NFPA
FIRE EXPERTS ADVISE PREPAREDNESS  
There's a fire in an American home every 10 seconds, and every minute there's a fire serious enough to warrant calling the fire department.  One person is killed in a residential fire in the United States every two and one half-hour, while another 20,000 people are injured. (1)
Think about this: a fire may smolder for hours before bursting into flames, but once flames appear, it may take only two minutes for it to spread throughout a room.  Once this occurs, heat, flames and/or carbon monoxide have the potential to kill every occupant in the room almost immediately.
A startling 1 in 3 homes has a disabled smoke alarm, and last year 69 percent of fire fatalities occurred in a home where no working smoke alarm was present. (2)
The United States Fire Administration recommends a monitored fire alarm system.  Monitored systems offer something regular alarms don't: Constant watch over your home.  FireArrestJ is the first product designed specifically for residential monitored fire protection.
A next generation smoke alarm, FireArrestJ is the first wireless, easy-to-install home fire monitoring system that brings the fire department to a home where a fire is detected.  It works in conjunction with Alarmcast Security Services to provide protection 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year.  The obvious advantage of using FireArrestJ is that it is monitored.  This means your house and its contents are protected whether or not anyone is home.
Fire experts agree monitored smoke alarms save lives and property.  According to Richard Dryer, president, National Association of Fire Chiefs, "Monitored smoke alarms are always heard."
In addition to the human life and financial savings realized by discovering a fire in its beginning stages, monitored fire alarm systems may also help their owners save money on insurance.  Most insurance companies will reduce the homeowner's insurance premium by up to 15% for homes with monitored fire alarm systems.
"If you could make a fire less damaging, save property, save money on homeowner's insurance and prevent stress and trauma to you and your family, why wouldn't you?" said Jim Hancock, fire chief of Kitchener, Ontario, Canada
FireArrest alarms use photoelectric technology, which is more effective in sensing smoldering fires than ionization technology.  Today, off-the-shelf ionization alarms are commonly used in households, while photoelectric alarms are preferred in the commercial sector.
On average, photoelectric alarms respond more than an hour before ionization alarms in the presence of a smoldering fire, the most common type of household fire.  And because photoelectric alarms are created to sense and differentiate among various odors and average dust levels in a home, they are not triggered by things that commonly cause false alarms in ionization detectors, like steam from a shower or burnt cookies.
FireArrest™ is comprised of one or more photoelectric smoke alarms and a base station.  It works with the subscriber's telephone to provide protection.  Only a screwdriver is needed for installation.  For further information about FireArrest™, call 1-888-488-1492.  
Residential fires are indiscriminate.  They occur in wealth neighborhoods and in poor neighborhoods, in low-crime areas and in high-crime areas.  Homes armed with a monitored fire alarm system have the best chance of avoiding loss of life and damage from a fire.
The patented FireArrestJ photoelectric technologies  used in more than 4 million smoke alarms installed throughout North America today.  FireArrestJ equipment is provided by Supra, a division of Interlogix, Inc.  Since 1966, Interlogix companies have developed, manufactured and distributed components, software, and systems that are designed to deliver security, safety, convenience and lifestyle enhancements to consumers and businesses throughout the world.  Visit www.interlogix.com for more information about Interlogix, Inc., and it's products.
FireArrest systems will be monitored around-the-clock by some 20,000 trained employees who monitor homes and businesses nationwide. Alarmcast uses the largest single provider of electronic security services to monitor your FireArrest system. More than two million commercial, federal and residential customers throughout North America and the United Kingdom utilize this total security solution which includes intrusion and fire protection, closed circuit television, access control, mobile security, critical condition monitoring and integrated systems. For more information about a security system for your home, your home office or business away from home, contact  www.alarmcast.com or call 1-888-488-1492.

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