SCHINNEN, Netherlands (Oct. 6, 2009): Living in military housing or a rental home, it's easy to forget fire safety. "People tend to think their landlord or a military inspector has already taken care of things like smoke detectors and fire extinguishers," explains Rob Walraven, USAG Schinnen's Fire Chief. But that's not always the case.
Fire Prevention Week, Oct. 4 to 10, is a good time to do your own fire safety inspection and make sure your home is not at risk, Walraven says. To make his point, he recalls a serious fire that damaged a military housing unit at nearby NATO installation Rheindahlen in 2007. "Fortunately, no life was lost, but there was considerable property damage," Walraven said, "all caused by the inappropriate disposal of smoking materials."
A more tragic example occurred this past August when a house fire in Kampen, Netherlands, claimed the lives of four Dutch children, ages one to eight. The children were asleep on the third floor, in a typical attic bedroom. Although the cause of the fire has not yet been officially determined, Walraven notes there were no functioning smoke detectors in the stairwell leading up to the third floor.
"The children were all found lying in their beds, which would indicate they were overcome by smoke and probably died in their sleep," Walraven surmises. If smoke detectors had been functioning, there's a good chance the children would have awakened and escaped. "Time is so important; a fire can engulf a home within five minutes," Walraven warns. "Every second makes a difference."
The value of smoke detectors is in providing an early warning, thus giving victims a chance to take action. "With an early warning, you have time to initiate an evacuation, time to call the fire department, and maybe time to try to extinguish a fire before it gets out of hand," Walraven explained. "The bottom line is very simple: smoke detectors save lives," he stressed.
Walraven offers these steps to remember in case of fire:
1. Raise the Alarm: Shout fire and evacuate immediately. Life always takes priority over property.
2. Call the fire department: 1-1-2 is the emergency number in Germany and the Netherlands.
3. Try to extinguish the fire: Only attempt this if the fire is small and you have a proper fire extinguisher. Attempting to extinguish a fire is the lowest priority; never take any risks.
To learn more about fire safety, visit the Family Safety Fair at USAG Schinnen, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Oct. 10. Try your hand at using household fire extinguishers and learn which fire prevention tips you need to implement for the safety of your home and family. Experts will also be on hand to provide advice and resources for poison control, stranger safety, child fingerprinting, pet safety, bike helmet safety and much more. For information, contact the USAG Schinnen Fire Chief, 0031-46-443-7230 or Army Community Services, 0031-46-443-7500.
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