The Oakville Fire Department will be knocking on the doors of rental properties over the next few months in an effort to promote fire safety.
The visits are part of the Home Awareness Program, which runs from May 11 to July 31.
This year firefighters will be educating tenants about the need to be careful while cooking and smoking.
“Unattended cooking and careless smoking are among the leading causes of home fires in Oakville,” said Oakville Fire Chief Brian Durdin.
“Unattended cooking and careless smoking are among the leading causes of home fires in Oakville. Fortunately, there are simple things you can do to prevent these fires and keep your family safe.”
Oakville Fire Chief Brian Durdin.
“Fortunately, there are simple things you can do to prevent these fires and keep your family safe.”
The door-to-door safety campaign provides residents with an opportunity to discuss fire safety issues with trained firefighters who will distribute fire safety information, including the following tips:
· Stay in the kitchen when cooking. If you have to leave — even for a minute — turn off the stove and remove the pot/pan.
· Keep things that can catch fire — like oven mitts, towels or food packaging — away from your stove top.
· Keep a proper-fitting pot lid nearby when cooking. Do not try to move a pot if it catches fire. Instead, slide a lid over the pot and turn off the burner.
· Never disable smoke alarms or remove batteries.
· If you smoke, smoke outside and use deep, wide ashtrays that cannot be knocked over.
· Empty ashes into a metal container — not the garbage can — and put it outside. Cover butts and ashes with water and sand before throwing out.
· Never throw lit cigarettes butts off balconies, or put them out in plant pots.
· Never smoke in bed.
The Oakville Fire Department is pointing out that fire safety is a shared responsibility and that landlords and property managers are responsible for installing and maintaining smoke and carbon monoxide alarms and tenants are responsible for notifying the landlord if their alarms are not working.
Link to article: Oakville Fire Department visiting rental properties to promote fire safety
Oakville Beaver