The Siuslaw news., October 05, 2019, Image 21

FIRE PREVENTION WEEK | SATURDAY, OCTOBER 5, 2019
Not every hero wears a cape.
PLAN and PRACTICE your ESCAPE!
™
firepreventionweek.org
©2019 NFPA
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SIUSLAW VALLEY
FIRE & RESCUE
About Fire Prevention Week
Fire Prevention Week is observed
each year during the week of October 9th
in commemoration of the Great Chicago
Fire, which began on October 8, 1871, and
caused devastating damage. Th is horrifi c
confl agration killed more than 250
people, left 100,000 homeless, destroyed
more than 17,400 structures, and burned
more than 2,000 acres of land.
Since 1922, the National Fire
Protection Association (NFPA) has
sponsored the public observance of Fire
Prevention Week. In 1925, President
Calvin Coolidge proclaimed Fire
Prevention Week a national observance,
making it the longest-running public
health observance in our country. Th is
proclamation was sparked by the startling
number of fi re deaths that had accrued in
the United States in 1924, approximately
15,000 fi re deaths, and the population
was estimated at 114 million people. In
the United States during 2017, 2291 lives
were lost in fi res, the population was
estimated at 325.7 million people.
During Fire Prevention Week,
children, adults, and teachers learn how
to stay safe in case of a fi re. Firefi ghters
provide lifesaving public education in an
eff ort to drastically decrease casualties
caused by fi res.
F IRE C HIEF M ICHAEL S CHICK ' S M ESSAGE
Th anks for observing Fire Prevention
Week with us for 2019. Fire Prevention is one
of the most important ways in which we can
help keep our citizens safe from fi res. Once
a fi re starts, we have a very short window in
which our eff orts will have a positive eff ect
on the outcome. Th e materials found in our
homes today burn very quickly and fi res
can spread rapidly. Consequently, it is very
important for our citizens to do everything
they can to make their homes and businesses
as safe as possible and the men and women of
Siuslaw Valley Fire & Rescue are here to help
you. Our message this year is for everyone
to plan and practice your escape. Of course,
this is important not only for fi res but for
other disasters as well. I have fond memories
years ago of practicing with our children to
get out of our house and go to our family
meeting place if we had an emergency. Our
bedrooms were on the second fl oor so we
had to be creative in how we could escape.
For my family it involved a portable escape
ladder. Whatever your plan is, it is important
that you discuss it with everyone in the home
and practice!
I have only been here as your Fire &
EMS Chief for a few months, but I have
been truly impressed with the dedication
of our fi refi ghters and EMTs and I consider
everyone of them a hero. We need to work
together to keep our community safe and I
encourage everyone to be a hero, too. Plan
and Practice Your Escape!
M ESSAGE F ROM F IRE P REVENTION C APTAIN
T ONY M ILLER
Siuslaw Valley Fire & Rescue is teaming up with the National
Fire Protection Association® (NFPA®)—the offi cial sponsor of
Fire Prevention Week for more than 90 years—to promote this
year’s Fire Prevention Week campaign, “Not Every Hero Wears
a Cape. Plan and Practice Your Escape!” Th e campaign works
to educate everyone about the small but important actions they
can take to keep themselves and those around them safe.
NFPA statistics show that in 2017 U.S. fi re departments
responded to 357,000 home structure fi res. Th ese fi res caused
2,630 fi re deaths and 10,600 fi re injuries. On average, seven
people died in a fi re in a home per day during 2012 to 2016.
“Th ese numbers show that home fi res continue to pose a
signifi cant threat to safety,” said Lorraine Carli, NFPA’s vice
president of Outreach and Advocacy. “In a typical home fi re,
you may have as little as one to two minutes to escape safely
from the time the smoke alarm sounds. Escape planning and
practice can help you make the most of the time you have,
giving everyone enough time to get out.
While NFPA and Siuslaw Valley Fire & Rescue are focusing
on home fi res, these messages apply to virtually any location.
“Situational awareness is a skill people need to use wherever
they go. No matter where you are, look for available exits. If
the alarm system sounds, take it seriously and exit the building
immediately.”
Another year has
passed, and once again
Fire Prevention Week is
upon us. Siuslaw Valley
Fire & Rescue (SVFR) will
continue with a very strong
mission for fi re prevention
in our community. SVFR
has several year-round
fi re prevention projects
available to the public,
free smoke alarm and
CO detector installation,
emergency address signs
with installation, in home/
business fi re prevention
evaluations, and wildland
fi re evaluations. All these projects are off ered upon request.
You can contact me, Tony Miller, Fire Prevention Captain,
directly for more information or request any of the year-round
projects available, by calling the offi ce Monday-Friday 8:00
AM – 5:00 PM at 541-997-3212 or email me at tony@svfr.org