Indian River Canvases Lingo Creek Apartments - "Fire Safety with Apartment Living"

Over the past few days during the week of March 14th, the Fire Prevention Team in and for the Indian River Volunteer Fire Company canvassed the Lingo Creek Apartments and their entire building complex with a Community Outreach Effort to enhance and refine the residential awareness of residents.  The canvas touched approximately 72 units with the theme of “Fire Safety with Apartment Living.”

Fire Safety is critical in just about every setting of residential living. But when it comes to apartment building fire safety, there are specific things to consider, such as longer egress times, evacuation procedures, fire control and smoke movement through the building. In apartment buildings, fires can spread heat, flames, and smoke quickly throughout the entire building, affecting all occupants’ safety.

Apartment Fire Safety Tips

You may be well-versed in fire safety tips for homes but living in an apartment building presents a different set of concerns that you need to acknowledge, especially for those who live on a high floor of an apartment building. You can help protect and prepare yourself in the event of an emergency in your apartment building by following the precautions below:

1. Install Reliable Protection

Do your part in making sure your apartment has working smoke and co alarms installed. Alarms should be on every level for multi-story apartments, as well as outside each sleeping area and in every bedroom. Test your alarms monthly and change the batteries every six months, or upgrade to our 10-year sealed battery alarms for hassle free protection. Fire extinguishers should also be on every level of your apartment and in the kitchen. Have your kitchen fire extinguisher easily accessible in the event of a cooking fire.

2. Have An Escape Plan

If a fire were to start in your apartment building, do you know what your escape route would be? Start by counting the number of doors between your unit and the nearest fire exit. Look around your floor to make sure you know where all exit doors are located and establish an evacuation plan that you practice regularly. If a fire does start, do not prop-open any exit or stairway doors. If you are located on a high floor, consider investing in an escape ladder for your window.

3. Stay Outside

Once you have safely evacuated your building, call 9-1-1 and do not go back inside. If you are worried someone is still inside, make sure to alert firefighters where you think they are. Only go back inside once firefighters tell you that it is safe to do so.

Apartment Fire Prevention

Help protect yourself and prevent fires from starting in your apartment with the following tips:

Use surge protectors to keep appliances safe

Don’t overload circuits

Don’t use cords that are frayed or cracked

Don’t run cords under rugs or between rooms

Never leave a portable space heater unattended

Ensure children cannot reach matches or lighters

Don’t store flammable items inside of your apartment

Never leave candles burning unattended

If you are cooking something, don’t leave food unattended on the stove

The purpose of this Community Initiative was to educate the community with fire prevention and fire safety awareness topics including but not limited to home fire safety discussions, having an escape plan, and the importance of working smoke alarms inside your residential location.

Overall, the community residents were very receptive to this community outreach initiative and the representatives of the fire company and community exchanged much positive dialogue with respect to the topics discussed.

Illustrated herewith are photographs of the activities in this community.