Do you know that there’s relevance in installing the right basement windows to the likelihood of you being saved in times of fire incidents?
Admittedly, accidents do happen when we least expect them, and fire incidents are on top of the list.
We can only do so much hoping for this not to happen in our own home. But worse comes to worst, do you honestly know what to do when that time comes?
In the year 2013 alone, there were 22,589 of unique fire occurrences in Virginia, this is according to the latest report of the Virginia Department of Fire. Consequently, there’s one civilian killed or injured by fire in Virginia every 18 hours in 2013. Based on the latest count for the present year 2014, there were about 10,081 incidents for the latter. (See: VDFP ~ Fire Data & Statistics ~ Virginia Department of Fire Programs).
For the record, January was the month with the most incidents, while April was the month with the largest amount of fires. On top of the major causes involve cooking with 32.34%, heating 22.60%, and some unknown causes with 16.93% (see: Residential Structure Fire Causes Summary, Virginia, 2014)
Here are some quick facts on how your Egress Window Wells can save you and your loved ones in times of extreme fire.
1. Relax and Stay Calm. Don’t cram. When you panic, the tendency is you become absent-minded. Panicking to death and/or screaming will simply consume your energy. For this time being, you need to remind yourself of the house’s blueprint. Be mindful of the exit points.
2. Protect Yourself from Suffocation. Secure a wet face towel/ handkerchief/ or any cloth closest to you, then cover your nose and mouth. This will prevent you from being exhausted of the smoke. If you’re not protected, the greater chance you’d pass out because of the carbon monoxide emission and other poisonous gases from the smoke.
3. Drop and Crawl. Remember that smoke’s behavior is towards going out of the room being burnt by fire. Most of the air exit paths are situated on the holes/leaks on the walls, ceilings, etc. In this scenario, safest air to breathe would be found below the knee level.
4. Keep Moving. Never cage yourself in the bathroom. The notion that water from the bathroom would spare you from death is never a truth. You would only put yourself in clear danger. You might not get burned, but you’d eventually be needing cleaner air to survive in the long run.
5. Proceed To The Safest Exit – The Basement Window. The common practice is you seek the window closest to your location and jump for life. This is common with what we see on TV. But come to think of it, this is not an assurance. You might incur more injury doing this. Having #3 in mind, it would be logical that the safest place to find a sure exit would be in your basement. With the Basement Window Wells’ built in step, you have peace of mind, knowing that your family can escape from your basement in the event of an emergency. This is mainly designed for this purpose.
6. Stop, Drop, & Roll. In case you’ve been able to get out of the house, but caught up by the fire. These are the things to do:
*STOP – Again, don’t panic so you can think of the next thing to do.
*DROP – This is the best position to get rid of the fire from your body.
*ROLL – You can cage the oxygen that keeps the fire from burning. You’ll observe that rolling your body will slay the fire.
Call for immediate help so you can be secured with the proper medication the soonest possible time.
What do you think? Did I miss any? Please share your tips by leaving a comment. We would love to hear from you.
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