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January 2006 I
hope everyone had a trouble free Christmas and enjoyed it. However, this
is the start of another year, and hopefully, from a fire safety point of
view, another safe year for
all the residents of the area. This
month I am going to inform you all of the good work that Shirebrook
Community Fire Station achieved last year. Firstly and without doubt the
most important fact was that there were no deaths due to accidental
dwelling fires, although we attended these incidents injuries were low and
certainly none were life threatening. If we have another year like that
and reduce the number of house fires even more, we will be happy. One
major reason behind people being more safe is the FREE
Fire Safety Check, FREE Smoke Alarms and Last
year a fantastic 700 properties and their occupants were made a lot safer
with a total of 1156 FREE smoke alarms fitted. These figures are more than
double that of 2004, but this year we will strive to do even better. As I
have explained before, absolutely ANYONE, regardless of age, status or
where you live, can have this, so please telephone 01246 454413 or 01623
742222, or if you see the lads out and about in the van, just ask, they
will be more than happy to take your details. What
is pleasing is that more and more residents of Langwith, New Houghton and
Pleasley had a Safety Check. To all you out there, just remember -
it's .your Fire Station as
well, we are just based at Shirebrook. Another
achievement was the Fire Safety talks given to all Year 2 and Year 6
children, at all schools in our area. This will be done again this year
and the next. These
children are the next generation, and because of a good knowledge of Fire
Safety they are going to be a SAFER generation. One thing that is
essential to all this happening is the fact that we work closely with
groups, organisations and partnerships within our community. Indeed, this
newspaper accounts for more than half of out Fire Safety check requests.
This is the benefit of partnership working. Last
year many groups visited the Fire Station, where they were treated to a
Fire Safety talk and video, shown how the Station works and had a splash
around with the hose. We are a Community Fire Station, YOUR Community
Station, so if you're group would like to pay us a visit, phone us on
01623 742222 on any Thursday evening. Finally
I would just like to say that should you ever be unfortunate enough to
need a fire engine in an emergency,
we are on call 24 hours a day - 7 days a week - 52 weeks a year, providing you with an highly trained, professional,
caring Fire & Rescue Service.
December 2005 Hello
and welcome to what is the last edition of 2005. Now, with Christmas well
and truly upon us here are a few tips on how to Celebrate Safely. Fire
Safety may be the last thing on your mind at Christmas but if you think
about it, decorations extra guests, candles, party's etc., can heighten
the risks so here are a few safety tips. 1.
DECORATIVE LIGHTS Check the maximum amp that can be handled by the fuse in the plug. If bulbs blow replace them. Turn decorative lights off at night and when you go out. Don't
let bulbs touch anything that can bum easily like paper or fabrics. 2.
CANDLES Candles
are small fires waiting to become big fires, so. Never leave them
unattended. Never
place in a draught. Never
use near children. Always
use a sturdy, correct holder, on a heat resistant surface. Put
them out completely at night. 3.
DECORATIONS Given
a chance paper decorations will bum so keep them and greeting cards away
from heaters, lights, candles and the fireplace. 4.
HAVING A PARTY If
you are having a Party enjoy yourselves but be careful. Let
your guests know here to find door and window keys if they stay over. If
they smoke put out extra ashtray and make sure all cigarettes are put out,
right out. Keep
escape routes clear at all times. Resist
the temptation to cook, particularly if you have been drinking. Test
your smoke alarms before the start of the evening. Remember
its easy to be careless when you are tired or have been drinking. Finally
we would just like to wish everyone a Safe Merry Xmas and a Safe New Year,
and a big thanks to everyone who has helped us to make Shirebrook,
Langwith, Pleasley and New Houghton a safe place to live, work and visit.
November 2005 I
sincerely hope that everyone had injury free bonfire festivities, and that
you all enjoyed them. Now that bonfire night is out of the way a lot of
you will begin to get the Christmas decorations out of storage. This
in turn will cause us a few problems, as every year there seems to be more
lights on the outside of houses than there has ever been. Some people do
this for charity, a local competition, or even just for a bit of friendly
rivalry between neighbours. However, from a fire safety point of view, and
for the fact that electricity is involved, we need to be careful, so here
are a few tips on how to be safe. 1.
Always make sure that the plug conforms to British Standard and carries a
certification mark. 2.
Always make sure that the plug is fitted with the
correct fuse. 3.
Check the cables for signs of wear and tear before using them.
. 4.
Always switch off and unplug before changing fairy
light bulbs. 5.
Only use Christmas lights outside that are designed
specifically for outdoor use. 6.
Be careful when using adaptors, you can easily overload them and this in
turn can cause a fire. 7.
Multi-point adaptors are the safest, however the golden rule is that all
plugs used with adaptors should not exceed 13amp in total. S.
Circuit breakers can and should be used, where possible, as an extra
security measure against an electric
shock or fire. 9.
If plugs .or sockets get hot when used .
switch off and unplug them - DO NOT USE THEM !! 10.
Of course, the best way is to pay a qualified electrician to check that
everything is O.K. 11.
Never leave your property without switching all lights off: 12.
Finally, remember when decorating the outside of your house with Christmas
lights, be careful, as there is always the danger of falling off the
ladder !! You may be thinking that this advice may be a little excessive, however, some 28,000 fires in the home are started by electrical faults, accidents or misuse of equipment. These fires kill or injure around 2,500 people - DON'T LET IT HAPPEN TO YOU !!
October 2005 This
month I am going to concentrate on the biggest single cause of fire deaths
than any other, and that is fires caused by cigarettes. Now,
I know that I have spoken about the dangers of 1. Take extra care if you smoke when you are drowsy, taking prescription drugs or if you have been drinking, it's very easy to fall asleep and not notice a cigarette smouldering.
2.
Believe it or not, people still smoke in bed. Considering the amount of
flammable materials there, and the fact that when we go to bed we are
usually tired, beggars belief -
NEVER SMOKE IN
BED !!
3.
Some people smoke when they are drinking, if we're not careful we may bum
ourselves resulting in severe burns, scarring or even death.
4.
Don't leave a cigarette, cigar or pipe lying around or on the edge of
furniture. They can overbalance or get knocked over onto a carpet or
anything else that may catch fire.
5.
Use a proper ashtray, one that is heavy, deep and won't be able to be
knocked over as easy as others.
6.
Never tap your ash into a wastepaper basket.
7.
Cigarettes can burn at temperatures of over 700 degrees centigrade, so
make sure you put them out, RIGHT OUT!! A few drops of water in the
ashtray before you go to bed is a good idea. Of
course it's not just the actual cigarettes that are a problem, the matches
and lighters are as well. Every year children die from starting fires
because they have been able to get hold of matches and lighters that they
shouldn't have. If you have children please, please keep all matches and
lighters out of sight, and more importantly out of reach of them. I'm sure that you agree it's not worth taking a chance! |
