Laneith asked:


I work in a library and we have storytimes for the kids each week. We need a Fire Safety craft for Fire Safety week. I’ve looked all over the internet for one and have been so far unsuccessful. So I was wondering if anyone knew one off of the top of their head.

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Ben Anton asked:


It is essential that no matter where you live you take care to protect your home and family from fire. Homes in areas that experience high temperatures and dry conditions are even more susceptible to fire dangers, especially during the summer. There are a number of safety measures you should consider as fire season is in full force around the country to protect your family and your personal property from the potential for fire damage.

Advanced Planning

The simplest and easiest way to prevent fire damage is to think ahead. Educate yourself on the high-risk areas around your home, the type of vegetation surrounding it, and how fire-resistant your land may or may not be. If you live in a wooded area, know the history of wildfire in your area. Is there a history of drought during the summer? Have there been fires near your property in the past?

Evacuation

Homes in areas at high risk for wildfires should have a proper emergency evacuation plan - this may be the surest way to protect your family. Plan several escape routes in case a fire blocks main roads and have emergency kit materials ready to go at a moments notice.

Safety Zone

Creating a safety zone around your house and property can help reduce the amount of damage done to your home by flames. Minimizing the amount of vegetation within thirty feet of your home will lessen the risk of fire damage to your possessions. It is recommended that trees and shrubbery be pruned to fifteen feet of fireplaces, stoves, and chimneys. Brick walls, stone patios, and swimming pools can also act as barriers against flames.

Making sure the area immediately around your home is clear of combustible material is also very important for fire disaster prevention. Home and business owners should try to install electrical lines underground if possible. They should also notify the electric company if branches start to interfere with power lines. Keep firewood and gas grills away from any structure and combustible or flammable materials in approved safety containers. Overhangs are high risk items for fire; using the area under them for storage greatly increases that risk. Some property owners encase their overhang or porch stilts in non-combustible material such as brick, concrete, or metal to reduce the risk of fire damage.

Home Materials

Wire mesh added to air vents and chimneys will help prevent embers and flaming debris from entering a building. Fire-resistant siding, such as stucco, metal, or brick helps a home resist catching fire if flames get too close. Dual- or triple-pane thermal glass helps reduce the risk of heat passing through your windows and igniting materials inside your home.

The roof is the most vulnerable part of your home during a fire. Wood, shake, and shingle roofs are particularly risky. It is best to stick with fiberglass, slate, metal, clay, or concrete tile.

Proper disaster preparation could mean the difference between losing everything - property, possessions, lives - and salvaging your home and everything you hold dear. Take the time to learn the fire history of your area and implement proper fire damage prevention measures in order to drastically reduce the risk of damage and the need to restore your home, documents and important materials completely. Contact your local fire department and find out what they recommend for fire protection if you have any questions about your particular area.

~Ben Anton, 2008



Kurt

Pastapete asked:


My paintball gun wont come off of the electronic safety. when i flip the switch it turns off. Help?

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Diana Ennen asked:


As the California wildfires continue and the new threat of mud slides emerge, disaster recovery planning is front and center. It’s important for all to take this time to plan. If you havent prepared a disaster recovery plan, now is the time to do so. Even 30 minutes now can save one from a lifetime of heartaches.

Dr. Paulo J. Reyes, a First Responder in California and author of the fiction thriller Sledgehammer has firsthand disaster recovery experience and participated in various disaster relief efforts in California including the major earthquake in L.A. in 1994. He advised, “Loss of lives can be greatly reduced if everyone has a complete plan of action prior to the event. Not only with the reduction of heart attacks and stress related illnesses, but people tend to get to safety quicker if they have already planned ahead and know what they are going to do. Here are some steps to take to prepare:

Step One –Identify a safe place for everyone to meet. This pre-determined place should be discussed with family members prior to an emergency. A second location should be discussed. Also, out-of-town relatives should be advised of this location. Additionally, each person should have a list of phone numbers for immediate neighbors and family members. 3X5 index cards work well.

Step Two  Take an inventory now. Write down all your valuables (personal and business). Don’t forget the little things that can truly add up. Keep receipts of all purchases. The receipts allow you to get that value when filing a claim. Take photos. Secure all this in a safe place.

Step Three — Write down a complete family medical history. Include any medical conditions, medicines and dosages, doctors names and contact information, where medical records can be found, etc. Be specific. A life can truly depend on this one step alone.

Step Four  Get a copy of all important information, wills, trusts, mortgages, deeds, birth certificates, contracts, medical records, even household bills to help get things restored quickly, etc. Back-up your computer. Get extra cash. Often ATMs are down so cash is needed.

Step Five — Write down all your computer passwords, and important information.

Step Six — Doublecheck all your insurance coverage. Are you adequately covered? Write down all your coverages, insurance policies, contact information, policy numbers, group numbers, date of births, etc. Think coverage of everything — life insurance, car insurance, property insurance, business insurance, etc.

Step Seven — No one wants to think about this one, but you should for your family’s protection. Do you have your will up-to-date? If not, please do. Especially for those with minor children. You need to know that they will be taken care of and placed in the homes of those who you trust and whom you know will provide the best care.

Plan now and update your plan often. Also, when you write down your information and contact numbers it allows you to see if you have the coverages you need. The amount of stress this will save can make a big difference in how you recover if a disaster were to offer.



Linda

Michael Wilson asked:


Restoration forestry is the process of restoring forests to a more natural condition. Most of the forests in the Western United States have been altered to an unnatural condition by over a century of fire suppression and past timber harvest practices. The current condition of our forests leaves them vulnerable to disease and catastrophic fires. Many people believe that we need to lock up the forests to protect them from human activity. The problem with that idea is that this does not allow us to fix the problem and it leaves them in an endangered condition. Even though past forest harvest practices have contributed to the problem, responsibly harvesting forest products can also be a viable tool to restore our forests

Forest fires are a natural part of the forest ecosystem. Before the arrival of Europeans fires were started naturally by lightning. Native Americans would also start fires to improve hunting. Our western forests are naturally dominated by conifers which have thick bark that provides insulation that protects them from fire. In the past fires would periodically be ignited and creep along the forest floor. These periodic fires would benefit the forest by cleaning up the forest floor and burning much of the underbrush and small trees that would compete with the larger trees for water and nutrients. After a fire the large trees with their foliage held high above and out of reach of the flames were left widely spaced where they had plenty of room to grow in the nutrient rich layer of ash left by the fire. Out of this ash will sprout grasses and forbs that provide food for wildlife.

With the arrival of Europeans the Native Americans were displaced and they were no longer a source of igniting fires. Then early in the last Century we started putting out lightning fires. Without fires brush and small trees were able to grow and compete with the larger trees. Early in the last Century early explorers were able to ride their horses through our forests but now after a century of fire suppression the forests have grown so thick that it can now be difficult to walk through them. With so many trees competing for limited nutrients and water they are not as healthy and don’t grow as fast or as large. The competition makes the larger trees less disease resistant less able to tolerate drought causing millions of trees to die every year from bark beetle infestations.

An even bigger problem comes now when a forest fire is ignited either by humans or lightning. The fuel load in the forests has become so high with all the thick trees and brush that now when there is a fire it will often burn at such a high intensity that it will incinerate the whole forest. Instead of having light fires that clean up the forest like they once did the thick trees and brush now act like a ladder and carry the flames high into the forest canopy where it kills everything including the big trees. These fires can be so intense that they sometimes bake the forest soil which can leave them impervious to water so precipitation just runs off causing erosion landslides and flooding. This baked soil can also make it more difficult to regenerate a new forest.

Some environmental groups advocate leaving the forests alone to let them burn because fire is a natural part of the forests. The problem with that idea is the forests are out of equilibrium and letting them burn often destroys them. Before we can allow fires to burn in a natural way the excess fuel load must be reduced. In many cases the most economically viable way of doing this is through commercial thinning where the excess trees are removed and utilized for wood products. In this way the sale of the wood products can help cover the enormous cost of restoring the forests. The excess conifers can be utilized to make products like lumber and poles. The hardwoods can be used to make excellent firewood.

Restoring our forests is an area where environmentalists and the forest products industry can work together to solve a problem. We can restore our forests while supplying our communities with jobs and forest products.



Manuel

trer asked:


I’ve heard stories where wildfires have been started by carelessly discarded cigarettes, firing toy rockets into dry brush…etc. In the right conditions, even a cigarette that you thought had gone out can turn into a blazing fire. There’s signs everywhere detailing fire conditions. There’s education out there. Why are people so stupid when it comes to fire? We know Nature has no mercy when it comes to these kinds of things.

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terrio1990 asked:


As a Gold Award Project, we are taking 15 under-privilaged girls to summer camp for a week. We will teach them fire safety, healthy eating, weather warnings, cooking safety, and stranger danger. Monday through Wednesday we will teach them what they need to know from 9-3. Thurdsday and Friday, we will put what they have learned, to use at a real camp ground. If you have any ideas about any of the above topics, please let me know.

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Frank Snepp asked:


Has the smoke evacuation system ever passed an acceptance test? Is a Fire Watch required at every Staples event?

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Steve T asked:


This would be the person who takes control in a buliding when it catches on fire and before the fire dept arrives.

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