Fire Prevention Week |
| October 3-9, 2004 Teaching safety all year long For the past 82 years, NFPA has been official sponsor of Fire Prevention week. This year's theme, "When Fire Strikes: Get Out! Stay Out!" underscores a simple lesson. Because fire can grow and spread so quickly, you may have as few as two minutes to escape safely. When every second can mean the difference between life and death, advance planning is absolutely essential. Being ready to deal with a home fire isn't difficult; it just takes a little preparation and some practice. Practice your EDITH (Exit Drills in the Home). Make sure you have a Fire Escape Plan that shows your main way (#1 exit) out of your home and your back up (#2 exit) way out of your home in the event of a fire. Sketch your homes floor plan on a blank piece of paper for each level and then in red ink draw a line from each bedroom to the #1 exit and then in a different color draw a line from each bed room to the #2 exit. Mark on your Fire Escape Plan your outside meeting place as well and make sure that when you practice your escape routes at least twice a year. Remember that your first way out (#1 exit) should be your normal route of travel to leave your home. Your second (#2 exit) way out may be a back door or even a window from your bedroom. You need to make sure you have all the equipment to exit your home safely, like an emergency ladder if your bedroom is on the second floor. Keep your Smoke alarms working properly. Test your smoke alarms at least once a month, following the manufacturer's instructions. Replace the batteries in your smoke alarms twice a year (HINT: schedule a battery replacement for the same day you change your clocks from daylight to standard time in the fall or in January and June. Never "borrow a battery from a smoke alarm." Smoke alarms can't warn you of a fire if their batteries are missing or have been disconnected. Commemorating a conflagration Fire Prevention week was established to commemorate the Great Chicago Fire, the tragic 1871 conflagration that killed more than 250 people, left 100,000 homeless, destroyed more than 17,400 structures and burned more than 2,000 acres. The fire began on October 8, but continued into and did most of its damage on October 9, 1871. According to popular legend, the fire broke out after a cow – belonging to Mrs. Catherine O'Leary – kicked over a lamp, setting first the barn then the whole city on fire. Chances are you've heard some version of this story yourself; people have been blaming the Great Chicago Fire on the cow and Mrs. O'Leary for more than 130 years. But recent research by Chicago historian Robert Cromie has helped debunk this version of events. The "moo" myth Like any good story, the case of the cow has some truth to it. The great fire almost certainly started near the barn where Mrs. O'Leary kept her five milking cows. But there is no proof that O'Leary was in the barn when the fire broke out- or that a jumpy cow sparked the blaze. Mrs. O'Leary herself swore that she'd been in bed early that night, and that the cows were also tucked in for the evening. But if a cow wasn't to blame for the huge fire, what was? Over the years journalists and historians have offered plenty of theories. Some blamed the blaze on a couple of neighborhood boys who were near the barn sneaking cigarettes. Others believed that a neighbor of the O'Leary's may have stared the fire. Some people have speculated that a fiery meteorite may have fallen to earth on October 8, starting several fires that day-in Michigan and Wisconsin, as well as Chicago. The Biggest Blaze that week While the Great Chicago Fire was the best-known blaze to erupt during this fiery two-day stretch, it wasn't the biggest. That distinction goes to the Peshtigo Fire, the most devastating forest fire in American history. The fire, which also occurred on October 9, 1871, roared through northeast Wisconsin burning down 16 towns, killing 1,152 people, and scorching 1.2 million acres before it was done. Historical accounts of the fire say that the blaze began when several railroad workers clearing land for tracks unintentionally started a brush fire. Before long the fast-moving flames were whipping through the area like a tornado, some survivors said. It was the small town of Peshtigo, Wisconsin, that suffered the worst damage. Within an hour the entire town had been destroyed. Eight decades of fire prevention Those who survived the Chicago and Peshtigo fires never forgot what they'd been through; both blazes produced countless tales of bravery and heroism. But the fires also changed the way that firefighters and public officials thought about fire safety. On the 40th anniversary of the Great Chicago Fire, the Fire Marshals Association of North America (today known as the International Fire Marshal's Association), decided that the anniversary of the Great Chicago Fire Should henceforth be observed not with festivities but in a way that would keep the public informed about the importance of fire prevention. The commemoration grew increasingly official over the years. In 1920, President Woodrow Wilson issued the first National Fire Prevention Day proclamation, and since 1922 National Fire Prevention Week has been observed on the Sunday through Saturday period in which October 9 falls. According to the National Archives and Records Administration's Library Information Center, Fire Prevention Week is the longest running public health and safety observance on record. The President of the United States has signed a proclamation pronouncing a national observance during that week every year since 1925. Fire Prevention Week 2004 is October 3-9. |