Fire Prevention Tips

Fire Prevention in Your Rental Unit

Fire in “residential” properties as a whole, account for close to 25,000 incidents a year, which is 41% of all the fires across Canada. Unsafe cooking is the leading cause of these preventable fires. The area of fire prevention and education about the dangers of fire cannot be stressed enough. 

Flagship is dedicated to minimizing the potential of fire occurring across the company through internal fire prevention inspections, fire safety training, and diligence from all staff.

How can you protect yourself and the ones you love from the dangers of fire?

•  Don’t leave cooking unattended for any reason. If you must leave, turn off all cooking appliances.

•  Smoking materials cause fires. Be sure to dispose of these in an appropriate manner. Balcony fires are usually started by improper disposal of smoking materials.

• Never leave candles unattended, and check to see they are in a sturdy holder that will not fall over.

• Give space heaters space! Keep away from curtains or bedding which may easily ignite.

• Keep matches and lighters away from and out of reach of children

• Carbon Monoxide.  Get a Monoxide alarm. Carbon Monoxide is a poisonous gas which you can’t see nor smell, yet it is deadly in enclosed spaces. Carbon Monoxide in the home is usually produced by oil furnaces or gas appliances when the fuel is not burned correctly.

• Clean cooking appliances.  Clean your cooking appliances after use. If you don’t clean regularly, you may end up with a food buildup around the heating elements. Under high temperatures this buildup turns to charcoal and can catch fire

• Don’t throw water on a grease fire.  If there is a grease fire in your kitchen, throwing water on the fire will only make it worse. Use baking soda if you have to. Best thing to do is to turn off the appliance and let it cool off. If it’s an oven, keep the door shut. Opening the door will let in more oxygen and intensify the fire.

• Avoid clutter.  If you’re using an appliance with a heating element, make sure there is plenty of space around it. Clutter prevents heat from escaping properly. While the appliance may not light on fire, there is a possibility of wires melting which can lead to an electrical fire later on. Additionally, the clutter itself may get too close to the heat source and also cause a fire.

• Light bulbs.  Make sure you get the correct wattage of light bulb. Using a 100 watt light bulb in a 40 watt socket will lead to overheating and possibly cause a fire. Consider switching to fluorescent light bulbs entirely because they emit considerably less heat than conventional ones.

• Don’t overload your circuits.  Use a power bar with a ground fault interceptor (GFI).  This feature allows the bar to detect when there is a surge in the power and it automatically smooth them out or shut the power off.

• Ensure your smoke alarm is working and test on a monthly basis. If your smoke alarm does not activate during your test, notify building management immediately.

www.flagshipcorp.ca