Is your home fire safe? Get lifesaving Red Cross tips
This October, the local American Red Cross is urging central Illinois families to prevent devastating home fires. Local volunteers responded to a record number of fires in fiscal year 2009.
Families should:
Fires pose a real danger to life and property. Of all the types of disasters that Red Cross volunteers respond to, fires are by far the most common. Last fiscal year, the Red Cross Central Illinois Chapter helped at a record 200 fires throughout its 10-county service area.
“When people think of disaster preparedness, they tend to think of tornadoes and floods. But home fires are disasters, too,” said Harley Jones, Red Cross director of Emergency Services. “If you’re standing in your yard in the middle of the night, watching flames consume your property, a fire is a disaster on a very personal scale. Our volunteers witness this firsthand.
“We want our friends in central Illinois to prevent fires,” Jones continued. “Doing so doesn’t require a lot of expensive equipment or training – just some planning with your loved ones.”
Visit www.redcrossillinois.org for more safety tips for your home and family.
