Fire Safety Tips for Fall

Fire Safety Tips for Fall

When the weather turns cold most people spend more time inside their homes using fireplaces, furnaces, and heaters to keep warm. There's nothing quite as cozy as a fire, but it presents some safety hazards. Keep these tips in mind.

Service Your Furnace

Before the cold autumn and winter weather sets in, be sure to call your heating and cooling company to service your furnace. A specialist should inspect the furnace to make sure everything is in working order and that there are no leaks.

Use Fireplaces Safely

Use Caution with Space Heaters

Keep that fire in its proper place by using a fireplace screen to keep sparks from flying out of the fireplace. Never leave a burning fire unattended, and make sure a fire in a fireplace is completely out before going to bed.

A space heater can be an effective way to warm up a chilly room, but it's essential that you read the instructions on the unit before you use it. If your space heater requires venting, make sure you have vented it to the outdoors. Never use your stove or oven to heat your home; only use space heaters that are approved for this purpose. Always allow at least three feet of empty area around space heaters.

Reconsider Leaf Burning

The Air Defenders reports that burning leaves produces dangerous and cancer-causing chemicals and urges homeowners to avoid disposing of leaves this way. If you decide to burn leaves, wear a protective mask. Burning leaves should only be attempted far away from a house or other structures on a homeowner's property. Always check the weather forecast before starting to burn leaves. This activity should not be attempted in windy conditions.

Fall Yard Work Safety Tips

Yard Chore Safety Tips

The following safety precautions and tips will help keep you safe and injury free while you are working in your yard.

• Take 5 to 10 minutes to warm up your muscles by doing light exercises orstretching before starting your yard work.
• Dress properly for working outside in the yard by wearing long pants, a long sleeved shirt and sturdy comfortable shoes.
• Keep children and pets away from the area when you are doing yard work.
• Have the right tools for the job you are doing.
• Rakes should be comfortable and the right size for your height and strength.
• Wear gloves while you are doing any type of yard work to help prevent your hands from blistering.
• Yard work such as raking involves repetitive motions. Changing your position often helps to prevent muscle pains and cramps from occurring.
• Always watch for low branches, large rocks and tree stumps.
• Be aware of uneven ground surfaces and slopes.
• When you pick up leaves, do not bend over from the waist. Bend from the knees.
• Do not overfill leaf bags.
• Do not carry full bags of leaves over your shoulder.
• When you are weeding, a half kneeling position is safer than bending forward.
• Wet leaves are very slippery. Make sure to wear boots or shoes with soles that are slip resistant
• When you are using a ladder make certain it is firmly on the ground. Never climb to the top of a ladder.
• When you are pruning hedges, hold the pruning shears close to your body.

Power Equipment Safety Tips

• Be careful when pouring the gas into the lawn mower and power equipment.
• Always make sure all of your power yard work equipment such as lawn mowers, edgers and trimmers are in good working order. Make sure to review and follow the recommended instructions for lawn mowers and power lawn and garden equipment.
• Wear protective goggles when you are mowing the lawn or working with other power outdoor equipment.
• Wear hearing protection when operating loud equipment.
• Never use your feet or hands to clear anything from underneath a lawnmower.
• If you must leave the lawn mower for any reason, turn it off. Never leave a lawn mower running unattended.
• Do not mow the lawn in sandals or with bare feet.
• Never drink any alcoholic beverages when you are mowing the lawn or working with any other power yard equipment.
• Never run a lawn mower or gas powered lawn or garden equipment indoors.

September is National Preparedness Month

If an emergency occurred tomorrow, would you be ready?

September is National Preparedness Month. Sponsored by FEMA, National Preparedness Month aims to educate and empower Americans to prepare for and respond to all types of emergencies, including natural disasters and potential terrorist attacks.

National Preparedness Month is a time to prepare yourself and those in your care for emergencies and disasters, both large scale and smaller local events. We know that emergencies can happen unexpectedly in communities just like yours, to people like you. We’ve seen tornado outbreaks, river floods and flash floods, historic earthquakes, tsunamis, and even water main breaks and power outages that impact communities for days at a time.

As commendable as they may be in their profession of assisting those in need, police, fire and rescue may not always be able to reach you quickly in an emergency or disaster. The most important step you can take in helping your local responders is being able to take care of yourself and those in your care for at least a short period of time following an incident; the more people who are prepared, the quicker the community will recover.

You are not helpless in the face of an emergency. With just a few simple steps, you can Be a Force of Nature by knowing your risk, taking action and being an example in your community.

Know your risk 

Emergencies can happen anywhere, at any time. It is important to understand potential risks where you live.

What you can do:

1. Bookmark weather.gov to stay informed on severe weather.
2. Learn about Wireless Emergency Alerts, messages that will be sent to your phone during an emergency.
3. Get practical tips on preparing for disaster at ready.gov.

Take action 

Make sure that you and your family are prepared for an emergency. Ensure that you can go for at least three days without electricity, water service, access to a supermarket, or other local services.
What you can do:

1. Prepare a disaster supply kit with at least three days of food and water.
2. Create a Family Emergency Plan, so that your family knows how to communicate during an emergency.
3. Obtain a NOAA Weather Radio.

Be an example 

Be a positive influence on your community by sharing your preparedness story. Let your friends and family know that you’re prepared for an emergency – and that they should be prepared too. Research has shown that many people won’t prepare until they see others doing so.
What you can do:

1. Share your preparedness story on Facebook so that friends and family will know what you’ll do in case of disaster.
2. Tell the world you’re prepared on Twitter using hashtag #NATLPREP.
3. Get involved with your local American Red Cross Chapter or train with a Community Emergency Response Team (CERT).

You don’t know when an emergency might occur. These simple steps will help you be prepared for the worst.

FEMA’s Ready.gov website provides detailed information on what may be most important to you and your family.  You can find specific information tailored to specifics needs such as people with disabilities, seniors, assisting children, business readiness, and even information for you pets. For more information, see Ready.gov

NOAA is working with FEMA and other agencies to help improve disaster readiness through campaigns such as National Preparedness Month. Through efforts such as the Weather-Ready Nation initiative, NOAA seeks to build community resilience in the face of increasing vulnerability to extreme weather events.

September is Food Safety Education Month - School Lunches

September is Food Safety Education Month. This is a great reminder that it’s important to prepare and store those school lunches safely. Food safety may not be on the radar for most kids (they’ve already got schoolwork and growing up to worry about), but simply practicing safe cooking and food preparation can go a long way in helping your kids avoid foodborne illness. Busy parents will be glad to know that practicing proper food safety is as easy as “clean, separate, cook and chill”:

Clean

• Be sure to thoroughly wash all fruits and vegetables under running tap water, then blot dry with a paper towel before adding them to the lunch bag. Don’t forget to also wash any produce with an inedible peel or rind such as bananas and avocados. Sly bacteria from the outer peel can be transferred to your child’s hands and then onto the edible part of the fruit.
• Remind your kids to throw out all perishable leftovers and disposable food packaging.

Separate

• To avoid cross-contamination, never reuse food packaging.

Cook

• Use insulated bottles to keep hot food out of the temperature “danger zone.” Carefully pour boiling water into an insulated bottle, then empty the bottle and fill it with hot food. Leave the lid on the bottle until it’s time for lunch.
• When making lunches using cooked meats (such as chicken salad), be sure to thoroughly cook all poultry, eggs and meat. Use a thermometer to check the internal temperature of meat.

Chill

• If you prepare lunch the night before, keep it cool in the fridge overnight.
• Choose an insulated lunch bag and use freezable gel packs to keep food cool until lunchtime. These products are usually quite inexpensive, and this small investment can go a long way in helping to prevent foodborne illness.
• Encourage your child to store his/her lunch in a refrigerator (if available).

Print out these tips so that both you and your kids have a reminder to clean, separate, cook and chill. You can also visit the “Fight BAC!” website for more free educational materials on food safety. Follow these simple steps, and your school year will be off to a healthy and safe start!

For additional resources or information, check out foodinsight.org.