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To keep your family safe, you need to understand how fire burns and how it can harm you. Only then can you properly protect yourself, your family and your home. How Fire Burns How Fire Burns Fire requires three elements, both to ignite and to continue burning:
As a fire burns, the heat it creates warms nearby items, making it even easier for them to start burning, too.
The bigger the fire gets, the more quickly it spreads. In less than 30 seconds, a small flame can turn into a major blaze. Because most people don't realize how quickly a fire grows, they
often:
If a fire starts in your home, the best action to take is to get out and stay out. Fire Creates Poisonous Smoke Smoke's poisonous gases spread quickly from where the fire begins and can overwhelm you long before you see any flames. Inhaling these gases can disorient you and slow your reaction time. Escape from the fire becomes more difficult. Two common deadly gases in home fires are:
Nearly 79 percent of home fire victims die primarily from the effects of smoke. Fire Creates Intense Heat In the first few minutes of a home fire, room temperature can reach 100ºF at floor level and 600ºF at eye level. This intense heat can cause serious injuries and death:
Many fire victims are seriously injured or die from the fire's intense heat. In fact, 15 percent of home fire deaths are caused by severe burns. In just five minutes, the room temperature can reach 1100ºF — hot enough to ignite every combustible object in the room simultaneously. This event is called flashover. After flashover, conditions in a burning room deteriorate rapidly, making survival unlikely. Fire Creates Emotional Trauma In addition to the physical dangers, fire takes a tremendous emotional toll on people and their families. Losing one's home, treasured possessions and photographs is traumatic. Belongings collected throughout your lifetime or handed down for generations are impossible to replace. Rebuilding and recovery can be overwhelming. Think about cataloging every item in your home. Now consider doing it without being able to see any of the possessions. Fire victims must recall, record and replace everything they own while coming to terms with the tragedy. They must do this while rebuilding their homes and their lives.
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