20
Fire Prevention
Never smoke in bed or leave cooking food
unattended. Teach children never to play with
matches or lighters! Train everyone in the home
to recognize the smoke alarm pattern and to
leave the home using their escape plan when
it’s heard. Know how to do “Stop, Drop and
Roll” if clothes catch on fire, and how to crawl
low under smoke. Install and maintain fire
extinguishers on every level of the home and in
the kitchen, basement and garage.
NFPA (National Fire Protection Associa-
tion)
Fire Safety in the Home: NFPA 72 is intended to provide reasonable safety for persons in family living units.
Reasonable fire safety can be produced through the following three-point program: (1) Minimizing fire hazards
(2) Providing fire-warning equipment (3) Having and practicing an escape plan.
Smoke Detection – Are More Alarms Desirable?
The required number of smoke alarms might not provide reliable early warning protection for those areas separated
by a door from the areas protected by the required smoke alarms. For this reason, it is recommended that the
resident consider the use of additional smoke alarms for those areas for increased protection. The additional areas
include the basement, bedrooms, dining room, furnace room, utility room, and hallways not protected by the
required smoke alarms. The installation of smoke alarms in attics (finished or unfinished), garages, or within 6’ of a
heating or cooking appliance is not normally recommended, as these locations occasionally experience conditions
that can result in improper operation.
For your information, the National Fire Protection
Association’s Standard 72 reads: Where required by other
governing laws, codes, or standards for a specific type of
occupancy, approved single and multiple-station smoke
alarms shall be installed as follows:
1. In all sleeping rooms and guest rooms
2. Outside of each separate dwelling unit sleeping area,
within 21 ft (6.4 m) of any door to a sleeping room,
with the distance measured along a path of travel
3. On every level of a dwelling unit, including base-
ments
4. On every level of a residential board and care
occupancy (small facility), including basements and
excluding crawl spaces and unfinished attics
5. In the living area(s) of a guest suite
6. In the living area(s) of a residential board and care
occupancy (small facility)
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