Keeping Our Children Safe

Last revised 03/15/2005

Please copy, print and fill out the form at the end of this safety message and make sure it is available to everyone.

• Each year, fire kills more children than any other home accident and seriously burns thousands more.
• Children playing with fire are one of the most common causes of home fires.
• Children are also needless victims of fire because they don't know what to do and how to react.

You can do more than you think to help protect our future leaders.

Repeat these basic rules to your children. Tell them again and again and again.  Don't nag them but remember, children learn by repetition.  This is not an all-inclusive list.  Your best safety is common sense and knowing the things your child likes to do and keeping a watchful eye on them.

• Stay away from the stove.
• Don't play with matches.
• Keep back from open fires.
• Don't fool with electrical wires and appliances.
• Teach them what hot means, and show them, as well as tell them what things are hot.
• Have your hot water heater turned down to a 100 to 125 degree temperature.
• Teach them not to play with the faucets, and don't leave them unattended.  Hot water from the bathtub could scald their skin within seconds and cause them to go into shock and die.
• Never store things they like above a stove.
• Turn pot handles away from the front of the stove.
• Never keep a lit cigarette unattended.
• Use tight fitting screens on all fireplaces.
• Supervise all cookouts and trash fire.
• Teach older children to assist you in keeping "baby" safe.
• Cover unused electrical outlets with plastic caps.
• Keep electrical appliances out of reach.
• Teach children not to touch electrical cords and never allow them to plug it into an outlet.
• Teach them to yell for help if they see smoke or fire.
• Teach them the STOP  DROP  and ROLL.
• • Resist the impulse to run.  STOP
  • Drop to the floor or ground.  DROP
  • Roll over and over until flames go out. Cover your face with your hands.  ROLL
  • Remove any clothing that is still smoldering.
  • Call 911 or a doctor or ambulance immeadiately.
• Teach them that they can smother fire with a blanket or overcoat.
• Use good common sense with space heaters.  These are usually on the same level as toddlers.
• Have a list for the babysitter and make sure the baby-sitter knows the procedures.  Print the list below and fill in the blanks and keep it handy.
• Plan a fire escape plan and teach everyone in the family how to do it.
• You should only buy  Child Resistant lighters  that have high safety standards and should not be easy for children to operate.  Teach the basics of fire safety.
• Keep matches and lighters above adult shoulder height, preferably in a locked cabinet.
• Children's sleepwear sizes 0 to 14 are required to pass flame-retardant tests.  These are highly flame resistant, but in some circumstances they could still burn.
• When buying holiday costumes make sure that they are "flame-retardant" or "flame-resistant.
• Be very careful when using candles.  These are open flame sources and they can fascinate children and they may want to play with them.

BABY-SITTER CHECKLIST:

• Keep this list with you during your baby-sitting job.
• If a fire should breakout, do not try to put the fire out.  Grab the children and leave the house.  Go to a neighbor's house to call 911 and the fire department.

Names and ages of children ___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________

Family name: ______________________________________________________
Full Address: _____________________________________________________
Town/City: _______________________________________________________
Home phone #: ____________________________________________________
Fire emergency number: _____________________________________________
Police emergency number: ____________________________________________
Hospital telephone number: ___________________________________________
Doctor's emergency telephone number: __________________________________
Poison-control center telephone number: _________________________________
Neighbor's telephone number: _________________________________________
Location of nearest fire-alarm or call box: ___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________

Location of meeting place outside the home where all members of the household are to go to escaping the fire: ___________________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________________
 

This page created May 6, 1998 by Dennis Gifford
was last updated
03/15/2005