SAFETY ARENA

SAFETY MEASURE AGAINST FIRE OUTBREAK IN HOME

With a phenomenon that is claiming lives in large numbers. Only recently, an aide to the Inspector-General of Police was burnt to death in his home when his efforts 

 to escape from fire were thwarted by burglar bars.                           

During the Christmas and New Year celebrations a night fire killed six persons in a Lagos home. In yet another fire incident, a  family of four perished in a house. The home. The blaze spared none of the children to flee were stalled by burglar bars. House fires occur quite frequently in Nigeria. The  Urban areas witness more cases of fire outbreak than rural areas

 Causes of fire in homes

Nigeria houses frequently go up in flames basically as a result of absence of fire safety awareness in the country. The culture of fire safety is yet to take roots here as an antidote to frequent and deadly house fires

Ignorance

Most house fires are caused by ignorance of fire related risks. Most Nigerians do not conduct fire risk assessment in order to determine what could ignite fire in their homes. Poor handling open flames and other unsafe habits denote regrettable and often tragic ignorance with regard to fire risks.

Defective electrical appliances

Due to low fire safety awareness, electrical appliances like TV sets, refrigerators, air conditioner etc are used until they spark and cause fire. It is common so knowledge that most house fires start from faulty air conditioner are often the sources of house fires. These heat producing elements can quite easily cause a huge fire.

Substandard electrical products

Cheap imported electrical wires, plugs, socket etc also contribute to frequent outbreak of house fires. These cheap imports quickly overheat, melt and ignite fire.

Carelessness                                                                                                        

In a recent incident, a lady went to a filling station to buy kerosene but was sold petrol instead. Unsuspecting, she poured the petrol inside  her stove and light it with a  match. She died instantly from the explosion that ensued. If the petrol attendant had been diligent in dispensing the right product, and if the lady had been careful in observing that PMS was sold to her instead of DPK, the unfortunate incident would have been averted and she would be probably alive today. Smoking in bed or in an area where petrol is kept, or using GSM phone where there is petrol are careless acts that can result in fire outbreaks.

Cooking accidents

Frying starts a lot of kitchen fires, which sometimes consume homes and their occupants. In the kitchen, forgetting food on the fire or having a frying accident can spark a blaze. Nigerians should learn to be alert while cooking. It also helps to keep the natural gas cylinder outside the kitchen owners of face-me –I –face –you apartments should ensure that common kitchens are provided for the occupants. In addition, cooking inside the living room, bedroom or along the hallway should be prohibited in such houses.

Most homes  in Nigeria are  equipped with smoke detectors that can detects fire outbreaks at early stages. Despite the enormous annual loss of fire in the country, safety benefits of smoke detectors while the ordinary citizens are overwhelmed by poverty and other challenges of daily life.

Fire safety tips

Fire Safety awareness

You must become aware of  the risk of fire in your home. Do not ‘ax a faulty appliance, then get rid of it to avoid a fire accident.

Respect candles and matches

Open flames can set alight loose paper and clothes which in turn can set fire to furniture or upholstery. You should buy a rechargeable lantern and stay away from candlesticks . Avoid the PHCN(Please Hold Candle) syndrome. Keep matches out of the reach of children .Kids find naked flames fascinating, but they can trigger tragedy.

Install Smoke detectors

Install battery operated smoke detectors in your home to provide early warning of fire. Change the 9- volt  annually and occasionally test with cooking smoke, never  take fire safety for granted. It could prove tragic.

Many people overload electrical circuit in an effort to enjoy different electrical appliances.  Nigerians should always balance the load on electrical circuit in order to avoid fire outbreaks.

BE ALERT

People should be constantly look out for improperly disposed cigarette butts, welding in confined  hot electrical wires, water dropping on electrical circuitry, bush fires,  burning of refuse within the compound etc. The home owner should explain fire safety to his house hold also let them know how to discover fire hazards and eliminate them.