MAKING YOUR EMPLOYEES AND THEIR FAMILIES SAFE AT HOME 1. Make an escape plan Everyone at home needs to know what to do if there's a fire? A fire in your home means the first action is to get out, call 111 and make sure no one goes back into the building. Everyone needs to know exactly what to do without thinking. That is why it is important to have an to a practiced escape plan. A lot of house fires happen in the early hours of the morning when people are woken from a sleep and not thinking clearly. It cannot be stressed strongly enough that a house fire in an average house becomes dangerous to humans in 2 – 5 minutes. There is no time to instruct people during a fire event. 2. Make an escape plan Include everyone who lives in your home, especially children, older people and lodgers. Don’t forget uncles, aunty plus any other people who visit regularly. Have everyone talk through your plan, including what to do and what not to do in a fire. Remember the family is responsible for visitors so include activities such as sleepovers. Tell family members where the keys are for the doors and windows are kept. Plan the order you'd escape in, so that if you have to go out of a window you can help others down. Practise the plan and remind everyone of what to do and what not to do in a fire regularly Always have your address by the phone so children can read it out to the emergency services Put a reminder of what to do in a fire somewhere prominent, like on the door of the fridge   3. Discuss and choose an escape route The best escape route is the normal way in and out of your home you use everyday. Think of difficulties you may have if you have to get out of the house, for example in the middle of the night. Choose a second escape route in case the first one is blocked. Always keep both escape routes clear of toys and things that might get in the way. Particularly at night. If you are on the ground floor what are the problems if you have to escape out of the window. If you're on the first floor you should only do this as a last resort when you are in immediate danger. You should cushion your fall with bedding or cushions and lower yourself before dropping. Remember to shut the door to the passage, put blankets covering the gaps around the door to stop the smoke entering your room.   4. What if you can't escape? If you can't escape, you need to find one room for everyone to take refuge in It's best if the room you retreat to has a window and a phone Shut the door and block the bottom of it to prevent smoke getting in Open the window and call for help Stay by the window and lean out of the window to breathe if you need to   5. What if you live in a flat or apartment? High rise flats are built to be fireproof including the common areas such as passageways and stairways. Walls ceilings and doors will hold back flames and smoke for a short time. If there's a fire elsewhere in the building you're usually safer getting out early using these common areas than staying in your flat unless heat or smoke is filling your exit routes. Make sure everyone in your apartment or flat knows about the fire alert in the neighbouring flats and apartments by banging on the doors on your way out. Set off the fire alarm if there is one. If there's a lot of smoke, crawl along the floor where the air will be cleaner. Get everyone out and don't delay for valuables. Don't investigate the fire. It will be growing fast and smoke can be toxic. Before you open doors check them with the back of your hand. If they're warm don't open them as the fire is on the other side. Never use the lift unless directed by the Fire Service. Go down the stairs. If the fire enters the lift, it consuming the oxygen in seconds leaving lift passengers with nothing to breathe.   6. What else can I do? Fit smoke alarms (photo electronic type only), that comply with the NZ Standard or equivalent international standard. They start beeping shortly after the fire starts and give you more time to get out. Test them weekly and change the battery at daylight saving time. Don’t forget to put the nozzle of the vacuum cleaner against the smoke alarm to stop the dust building up causing false alarms. Purchase a portable domestic fire extinguisher and learn or read how to use. Measure the distance the manufacturer recommends standing away from the flame. Most often this is between 2 and 3 metres.   Please Note: Emergency Consultancy Limited acknowledges the many different sources of information used to compile this instruction. While efforts have been made to ensure these life saving instructions can be used in a wide variety of situations, Emergency Consultancy Ltd cannot be held liable on how the instructions are used or applied.