Fire deaths

• In 2002, 79% of fires in the United States occurred in the home, resulting in 2,670 fire deaths.
• In the U.S., someone dies from a home fire roughly every 197 (2002) minutes.
• In Canada, someone is fatally injured in a home fire roughly every 31 hours. 
• Roughly half of all home fire deaths in the U.S. resulted from fires that were reported between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m. But only one-quarter of home fires occur between those hours. 
• Although children five and under make up about 9% of the country's population, they accounted for 17% of the home fire deaths.
• Smoking was the leading cause of home fire deaths overall, but in the months of December, January and February, smoking and heating equipment caused similar shares of fire deaths.

Smoke alarms

• Since the 1970's, when smoke alarms first became widely available to households in the United States, the home fire death rate has been reduced by half.
• Nineteen of every 20 homes (95%) in the U.S. have at least one smoke alarm.
• More than half of home fire deaths result from fires in the 5% of homes with no smoke alarms.  
• In one-quarter of the reported fires in homes equipped with smoke alarms, the devices did not work, most often because of missing, dead or disconnected batteries.
• In a 1999 survey, only eight percent of those whose smoke alarms had sounded in the past year initially thought that a fire had caused the alarm to sound and thought they should get out of their homes as a result.
• Smoke alarms that are 10 years old have a 30% chance of failing to work properly and should be replaced.

Home escape planning

• According to an NFPA survey, only a small number of families (25%) have actually developed and practiced a home fire escape plan to ensure they could escape quickly and safely.
• If a smoke alarm went off in the middle of the night, only 39 percent said they would leave the house immediately. Fifty-six percent said that they would investigate to find the source of the alarm.
• An estimated 6.6 million families planned and practiced a home fire escape plan as part of NFPA's Fire Prevention Week 2003 campaign with Weekly Reader/Lifetime Learning Systems. 

Home fire sprinklers

• Properly installed and maintained, automatic fire sprinkler systems help save lives.
• Automatic fire sprinklers and smoke alarms together cut your risk of dying in a fire in a one- or two-family dwelling by 82% when compared to having neither.

Heating

• During the months of December, January and February, heating equipment is the leading cause of home fires. About two-thirds of home heating fire deaths were caused by portable or fixed space heaters.

Candles

• Over the last decade, candle fires have almost tripled. In 1999 alone, an estimated 15,040 home fires started by candles were reported to fire departments. These fires resulted in 102 deaths, 1,473 injuries and an estimated property loss of $278 million.
• Forty percent of U.S. home candle fires begin in the bedroom.
• December had almost twice the number of home candle fires of an average month.

Cooking

• More fires start in the kitchen than in any other place in the home.
• Cooking fires are the #1 cause of home fires and home fire injuries.
• Unattended cooking is the leading cause of home cooking fires.

Electrical

• Fires started by electrical arcs, overloads and other electrical failures kill hundreds of people and injure thousands each year.
• In 1999, electrical distribution equipment was the fourth leading cause of home structure fires, but ranked first in cause of direct property damage.

Smoking materials

• Smoking materials (i.e., cigarettes, cigars, pipes, etc.) are the leading cause of fire deaths and the third leading cause of fire injuries in the U.S.
• Roughly one of every four fire deaths in the 1999 was attributed to smoking materials.
• The most common material first ignited in residential smoking material-related fires was mattresses and bedding, followed by trash and upholstered furniture.

 Smoke Alarms

Because fire can grow and spread so quickly, having working smoke alarms in your home can mean the difference between life and death. But these life-saving devices are only effective when they're working properly. Smoke alarms with batteries that are dead, disconnected, or missing can't alert you to the dangers of smoke and fire. Follow these tips to ensure that your smoke alarms are installed correctly and tested regularly.

Once the alarm sounds, you may have as few as two minutes to escape. By learning how to effectively use the smoke alarm's early warning to get out safely, you'll reduce your risk of dying in a home fire.

The right way to install smoke alarms

• Install smoke alarms on every level of your home, including the basement, making sure that there is an alarm outside every separate sleeping area. New homes are required to have a smoke alarm in every sleeping room and all smoke alarms must be interconnected.
• Hard-wired smoke alarms operate on your household electrical current. They can be interconnected so that every alarm sounds regardless of the fire's location. This is an advantage in early warning, because it gives occupants extra time to escape if they are in one part of the home and a fire breaks out in another part. Alarms that are hard-wired should have battery backups in case of a power outage, and should be installed by a qualified electrician.
• If you sleep with bedroom doors closed, have a qualified electrician install interconnected smoke alarms in each room so that when one alarm sounds, they all sound.
• If you, or someone in your home is deaf or hard of hearing, consider installing an alarm that combines flashing lights, vibration and/or sound.
• Mount smoke alarms high on walls or ceilings (remember, smoke rises). Ceiling mounted alarms should be installed at least four inches away from the nearest wall; wall-mounted alarms should be installed four to 12 inches away from the ceiling.
• If you have ceilings that are pitched, install the alarm near the ceiling's highest point.
• Don't install smoke alarms near windows, doors, or ducts where drafts might interfere with their operation.
• Never paint smoke alarms. Paint, stickers, or other decorations could keep the alarms from working.

A life-saving test: check your smoke alarms regularly

• Test your smoke alarms once a month, following the manufacturer's instructions.
• Replace the batteries in your smoke alarm once a year, or as soon as the alarm "chirps" warning that the battery is low. Hint: schedule battery replacements for the same day you change your clocks from daylight savings time to standard time in the fall.
• Never "borrow" a battery from a smoke alarm. Smoke alarms can't warn you of fire if their batteries are missing or have been disconnected.
• Don't disable smoke alarms even temporarily. If your smoke alarm is sounding "nuisance alarms," try relocating it farther from kitchens or bathrooms, where cooking fumes and steam can cause the alarm to sound.
• Regularly vacuuming or dusting your smoke alarms, following the manufacturer's instructions, can keep them working properly.
• Smoke alarms don't last forever. Replace yours once every 10 years. If you can't remember how old the alarm is, then it's probably time for a new one.
• Consider installing smoke alarms with "long-life" (10-year) batteries.
• Plan regular fire drills to ensure that everyone knows exactly what to do when the smoke alarm sounds. Hold a drill at night to make sure that sleeping family members awaken at the sound of the alarm. Some studies have shown that some children may not awaken to the sound of the smoke alarm. Know what your child will do before a fire occurs.
• If you are building a new home or remodeling your existing home, consider installing an automatic home fire sprinkler system. Sprinklers and smoke alarms together cut your risk of dying in a home fire 82 percent relative to having neither – a savings of thousands of lives a year.

Fire Escape Planning

• Pull together everyone in your household and make a plan. Walk through your home and inspect all possible exits and escape routes.  Households with children should consider drawing a floor plan of your home, marking two ways out of each room, including windows and doors. Also, mark the location of each smoke alarm. For easy planning, download NFPA's escape planning grid. This is a great way to get children involved in fire safety in a non-threatening way.
• Make sure that you have at least one smoke alarm on every level of your home.
• Everyone in the household must understand the escape plan. When you walk through your plan, check to make sure the escape routes are clear and doors and windows can be opened easily.
• Choose an outside meeting place (i.e. neighbor's house, a light post, mailbox, or stop sign) a safe distance in front of your home where everyone can meet after they've escaped. Make sure to mark the location of the meeting place on your escape plan.
• Go outside to see if your street number is clearly visible from the road. If not, paint it on the curb or install house numbers to ensure that responding emergency personnel can find your home.
• Have everyone memorize the emergency phone number of the fire department. That way any member of the household can call from a neighbor's home or a cellular phone once safely outside.
• If there are infants, older adults or family members with mobility limitations make sure that someone is assigned to assist them in the fire drill and in the event of an emergency. Assign a backup person too, in case the designee is not home during the emergency.
• If windows or doors in your home have security bars, make sure that the bars have quick-release mechanisms inside so that they can be opened immediately in an emergency. Quick-release mechanisms won't compromise your security - but they will increase your chances of safely escaping a home fire.
• Tell guests or visitors to your home about your family's fire escape plan. When staying overnight at other people's homes, ask about their escape plan. If they don't have a plan in place, offer to help them make one. This is especially important when children are permitted to attend "sleepovers" at friends' homes.
• Be fully prepared for a real fire: when a smoke alarm sounds, get out immediately. Residents of high-rise and apartment buildings may be safer "defending in place."
• Once you're out, stay out! Under no circumstances should you ever go back into a burning building. If someone is missing, inform the fire department dispatcher when you call. Firefighters have the skills and equipment to perform rescues.

  Putting your plan to the test

• Practice your home fire escape plan twice a year, making the drill as realistic as possible.
• Allow children to master fire escape planning and practice before holding a fire drill at night when they are sleeping. The objective is to practice, not to frighten, so telling children there will be a drill before they go to bed can be as effective as a surprise drill.
• It's important to determine during the drill whether children and others can readily waken to the sound of the smoke alarm. If they fail to awaken, make sure that someone is assigned to wake them up as part of the drill and in a real emergency situation.
• If your home has two floors, every family member (including children) must be able to escape from the second floor rooms. Escape ladders can be placed in or near windows to provide an additional escape route. Review the manufacturer's instructions carefully so you'll be able to use a safety ladder in an emergency. Practice setting up the ladder from a first floor window to make sure you can do it correctly and quickly. Children should only practice with a grown-up, and only from a first-story window.  Store the ladder near the window, in an easily accessible location. You don't want to have to search for it during a fire.
• Always choose the escape route that is safest – the one with the least amount of smoke and heat – but be prepared to escape through toxic smoke if necessary. When you do your fire drill, everyone in the family should practice crawling low on their hands and knees, one to two feet above the ground. By keeping your head low, you'll be able to breathe the "good" air that's closer to the floor.
• It's important to practice crawling on your hands and knees, not your bellies, as some poisons produced by smoke are heavier than air and settle to the floor.
• Closing doors on your way out slows the spread of fire, giving you more time to safely escape.
• In some cases, smoke or fire may prevent you from exiting your home or apartment building. To prepare for an emergency like this, practice "sealing yourself in for safety" as part of your home fire escape plan. Close all doors between you and the fire. Use duct tape or towels to seal the door cracks and cover air vents to keep smoke from coming in. If possible, open your windows at the top and bottom so fresh air can get in.

Important Links

Office of State Fire Marshal

National Fire Protection Association

U.S. Fire Administration Kid's Page

U.S. Fire Administration