Install smoke alarms in every bedroom, outside each separate sleeping area and on every level of the home, including the basement. Interconnect all smoke alarms throughout the home. When one sounds, they all sound.
An ionization smoke alarm is generally more responsive to flaming fires, and a photoelectric smoke alarm is generally more responsive to smoldering fires. For the best protection, both types of alarms or a combination alarm (photoelectric and ionization) should be installed in homes.
Test alarms at least monthly by pushing the test button.
Smoke rises; install smoke alarms following manufacturer’s instructions high on a wall or on a ceiling. Save manufacturer’s instructions for testing and maintenance.
Replace batteries in all smoke alarms at least once a year. If an alarm “chirps”, warning the battery is low, replace the battery right away.
Replace all smoke alarms, including alarms that use 10-year batteries and hard-wired alarms, when they are 10 year old or sooner if they do not respond properly.
Be sure the smoke alarm has the label of a recognized testing laboratory.
Alarms that are hard-wired (and include battery backup) must be installed by a qualified electrician.
If cooking fumes or steam sets off nuisance alarms, replace the alarm with an alarm that has a “hush” button. A “hush” button will reduce the alarm’s sensitivity for a short period of time.
An ionization alarm with a hush button or a photoelectric alarm should be used if the alarm is within 20 feet of a cooking appliance.
Smoke alarms that include a recordable voice announcement in addition to the usual alarm sound, may be helpful in waking children through the use of a familiar voice.
Smoke alarms are available for people who are deaf or hard of hearing. These devices use strobe lights. Vibration devices can be added to these alarms
Smoke alarms are an important part of a home fire escape plan.

When responding to a emergency call, a police officer, firefighter or rescue squad worker coming to your assistance can lose valuable time if there’s difficulty locating your home. A prominent and visible house number is an essential part of identify your home.
Could we find your house quickly, with the proper street address prominently displayed and visible to emergency vehicles?
If you have questions about how your address should be displayed, contact your local Fire Department. In the meantime, please read the following guidelines and then check your address numbers today.
Address numbers should be displayed at the driveway entrance on a mailbox, post, or fence that is easily visible from the road in any direction.
If the structure is one hundred feet or less from the road, the entrance door of the house or structure is clearly visible from the road, and there is no other suitable location at the normal entrance, then address numbers should be displayed on, above, or at the side of the main entrance door.
The address number should be displayed as numbers and not spelled out.
The numerals displayed should be at least three (3) inches in height on a color-contrasting background. Using reflective numbers is also a good idea.
Are the numbers visible at night?
If the mailbox is not actually located on the street, then the entire address (number and road name) should be shown on that mailbox to avoid any confusion.Numbers previously displayed, complete or partial, which might be confused with or mistaken for the assigned address number, should be removed from the mailbox and property.
Numbers should be properly maintained by the property owner to make sure that they remain readable from the road.

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In 2007, there were an estimated 362,500 reported home structure fires and 2,565 associated civilian deaths in the United States.
Fire can spread rapidly through your home, leaving you as little as two minutes to escape safely once the alarm sounds. Your ability to get out depends on advance warning from smoke alarms, and advance planning — a home fire escape plan that everyone in your family is familiar with and has practiced.

Facts and figures

Only one-fifth to one-fourth of households (23%) have actually developed and practiced a home fire escape plan to ensure they could escape quickly and safely.
One-third of American households who made an estimate thought they would have at least 6 minutes before a fire in their home would become life-threatening. The time available is often less. And only 8% said their first thought on hearing a smoke alarm would be to get out!

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Your ability to get out depends on advance warning from smoke alarms and advance planning.
Pull together everyone in your household and make a plan. Walk through your home and inspect all possible exits and escape routes. Households with children should consider drawing a floor plan of your home, marking two ways out of each room, including windows and doors. Also, mark the location of each smoke alarm. For easy planning, download NFPA’s escape planning grid (PDF, 634 KB). This is a great way to get children involved in fire safety in a non-threatening way.
Install smoke alarms in every sleeping room, outside each sleeping area and on every level of the home. NFPA 72, National Fire Alarm Code® requires interconnected smoke alarms throughout the home. When one sounds, they all sound.
Everyone in the household must understand the escape plan. When you walk through your plan, check to make sure the escape routes are clear and doors and windows can be opened easily.
Choose an outside meeting place (i.e. neighbor’s house, a light post, mailbox, or stop sign) a safe distance in front of your home where everyone can meet after they’ve escaped. Make sure to mark the location of the meeting place on your escape plan.
Go outside to see if your street number is clearly visible from the road. If not, paint it on the curb or install house numbers to ensure that responding emergency personnel can find your home.
Have everyone memorize the emergency phone number of the fire department. That way any member of the household can call from a neighbor’s home or a cellular phone once safely outside.
If there are infants, older adults, or family members with mobility limitations, make sure that someone is assigned to assist them in the fire drill and in the event of an emergency. Assign a backup person too, in case the designee is not home during the emergency.
If windows or doors in your home have security bars, make sure that the bars have emergency release devices inside so that they can be opened immediately in an emergency. Emergency release devices won’t compromise your security – but they will increase your chances of safely escaping a home fire.
Tell guests or visitors to your home about your family’s fire escape plan. When staying overnight at other people’s homes, ask about their escape plan. If they don’t have a plan in place, offer to help them make one. This is especially important when children are permitted to attend “sleepovers” at friends’ homes. See NFPA’s “Sleepover fire safety for kids” fact sheet.
Be fully prepared for a real fire: when a smoke alarm sounds, get out immediately. Residents of high-rise and apartment buildings may be safer “defending in place.”
Once you’re out, stay out! Under no circumstances should you ever go back into a burning building. If someone is missing, inform the fire department dispatcher when you call. Firefighters have the skills and equipment to perform rescues.
Putting your plan to the test

Practice your home fire escape plan twice a year, making the drill as realistic as possible.
Make arrangements in your plan for anyone in your home who has a disability.
Allow children to master fire escape planning and practice before holding a fire drill at night when they are sleeping. The objective is to practice, not to frighten, so telling children there will be a drill before they go to bed can be as effective as a surprise drill.
It’s important to determine during the drill whether children and others can readily waken to the sound of the smoke alarm. If they fail to awaken, make sure that someone is assigned to wake them up as part of the drill and in a real emergency situation.
If your home has two floors, every family member (including children) must be able to escape from the second floor rooms. Escape ladders can be placed in or near windows to provide an additional escape route. Review the manufacturer’s instructions carefully so you’ll be able to use a safety ladder in an emergency. Practice setting up the ladder from a first floor window to make sure you can do it correctly and quickly. Children should only practice with a grown-up, and only from a first-story window. Store the ladder near the window, in an easily accessible location. You don’t want to have to search for it during a fire.
Always choose the escape route that is safest – the one with the least amount of smoke and heat – but be prepared to escape under toxic smoke if necessary. When you do your fire drill, everyone in the family should practice getting low and going under the smoke to your exit.
Closing doors on your way out slows the spread of fire, giving you more time to safely escape.
In some cases, smoke or fire may prevent you from exiting your home or apartment building. To prepare for an emergency like this, practice “sealing yourself in for safety” as part of your home fire escape plan. Close all doors between you and the fire. Use duct tape or towels to seal the door cracks and cover air vents to keep smoke from coming in. If possible, open your windows at the top and bottom so fresh air can get in. Call the fire department to report your exact location. Wave a flashlight or light-colored cloth at the window to let the fire department know where you are located.

Brian David Ash Foundation

“Before you permit your child to sleep over with a friend, talk to the child’s parents,” says Judy Comoletti, NFPA´s Division Manager for Public Education. “Depending on what you learn, it can either uncover serious fire dangers or give you peace of mind during your child’s sleepover.”
Before you say “yes”
How well do you know the home?
Is the home clean? Does it appear to be structurally sound?
Is the home in a safe area?
If the home has security bars on doors and windows, do you know for certain that the bars have quick release devices inside, so your child could get out in an emergency?
Is your child comfortable in the home and with all the occupants?
Are you comfortable leaving your child in the home overnight?
How well do you know the parent(s)?
Are they mature, responsible and conscientious?
Will they supervise the children throughout the stay?
Are they cautious with smoking materials, matches and lighters, and candles?
Ask the parents
Are there working smoke alarms on every level, inside and outside each sleeping area? Are the alarms interconnected?
Do they have a well-rehearsed fire escape plan that includes two ways out and a meeting place outside?
Where will your child be sleeping? Is there a smoke alarm in the room? Are there two escape routes from the room?
Will the parents walk through their escape plan with your child?
Do the parents prohibit bedroom candle use by children?