On Fire Safety

Last week, Gemma and I attended an FDNY Foundation event in Rockefeller Center, to learn about their new partnership with AccuWeather. Both organizations have joined together to increase safety awareness especially during the holidays and winter months, encouraging communities to Be Ready in this shared mission. With a direct tie between weather and fire safety, home fires are at their peak during winter months, when many people rely on portable heating units. Holiday decorations with use of festive lights are another huge contributor to increase fire threat during this time of year. AccuWeather and the FDNY Foundation have joined together to encourage the public to take easy steps to prepare.

The FDNY Foundation, a non-profit organization of the New York City Fire Department, is dedicated to increasing public awareness and understanding of life-saving fire safety information throughout New York City communities. The Foundation may not be an actual firehouse, but Gemma still loved hopping on the fire truck, and pretending to drive the rig.

Through increased awareness via the “Be Ready” initiative, communities are reminded of the importance of life-saving tips, safety steps, and precautions to take action. During the event, AccuWeather presented the FDNY Foundation a donation of $25,000, to supports safety education, awareness, and outreach program. One of these includes the foundation-funded Fire Zone, a state-of-the-art fire safety learning center for teachers, parents, and kids located at Rockefeller Center, providing additional resources to make a difference.

AccuWeather and the FDNY Foundation educate school children, with a special presentation with preparedness plans, and safety information tips. Area students are taken through live, interactive demonstrations at FDNY’s Fire Zone, to understand top causes for fires, and learn how winter weather plays a contributing role. Gemma and I experienced the learning program, where we needed to crawl out of out a pretend fire zone, as fake smoke was filling the room.

Hot Dog, the official safety mascot of the FDNY, even came out to greet the kids.

Safety education and support do not end here. AccuWeather has strengthened its mission of saving lives, protecting property, and helping people, with the launch of AccuWeather Ready, a year-round weather preparedness program, which focuses on keeping people safe and informed. In addition to 24/7 weather information and updates, the AccuWeather Ready Program offers traditional 24/7 weather info and updates, along with new weather preparedness tools like in-app push notifications, personalized weather preparedness plans, tailored emergency kits with detailed shopping lists, educational weather news and videos, and an easy-to-use toolkit with actionable safety tips.

Some of these tips may be 101 for us grown ups, but teaching and making sure they become second nature to your kids is so important….

• Call 911 in case of fire, smoke, odor of gas, or medical emergency
• Check your smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors every few months to make sure they are working properly.
• Have an escape plan and practice it with your children.
• Know if you live in a fire proof/non proof building.
• Close doors behind you when escaping from a fire.
• Keep fire escapes clear.
• Enforce kid free zones while cooking in the kitchen.
• Place space heaters at least three feet away from combustibles.
• Know what to do if you catch on fire: Hair and clothing can easily catch on fire. If you or your clothing catch on fire, follow these steps to stop the spread of fire and to ensure your safety: Cover your face with your hands, drop to the ground and roll over and over, and call 911 for help.
  

With these learning tools from the FDNY Foundation and Accuweather, I think our house will feel a little safer this holiday season.