It is still the middle of February 2022, but we can now feel the change in the weather. Days are starting to get warmer, and soon it will be March;
March is many things traditionally- the start of summer; graduation of high school students (don't worry, the pandemic will end sooner or later, let us just keep on wearing our masks); it is also Fire Prevention Month, By virtue of Presidential Proclamation No. 115-A declaring March as so, due to the alarmingly high number of fires across the country during this period;
Even if it is not March, fire prevention month really should be all year round- the price of safety is eternal vigilance;
several things can be kept in the home all the time to mitigate the dangers of fires-- fire blankets and fire escape hoods; escape hammers can also be kept handy if the manner of egress is through a glass window or door; smoke detector alarms are often considered nuisances when their batteries start to run out, since they keep on emitting that beeping sound-- do not ignore it-- the price of a 9V battery is negligible compared to the damage a fire can cause;
A fire blanket is usually made of woven glass fibers, and can be used in several ways-- to smother a fire in the kitchen, to wrap around a person whose clothing has caught fire, or wrap around oneself to escape a burning building; the video here can be very helpful:
Fire Escape Hoods are also very essential-- the majority of fatalities in fires are caused by smoke inhalation; the Fire Escape Hood will give you enough time to egress from a smoke filled building, especially if used in conjunction with a Fire Blanket; to use a fire escape hood, one must be careful to remove BOTH the inside and outside rubber filter seals-- to neglect to remove one will mean that the Fire Escape Hood will not work as intended;
I believe that a Fire Blanket, Fire Escape Hood, and especially a properly installed smoke detector, will increase the chances of survival for the occupant of a house that is on fire; let us all be extra careful, not just in March, but all year round;