The Isle of Wight Fire and Rescue service offer local residents Home Fire Safety Checks. These checks give advice to residents on general fire safety awareness, smoke alarms and escape routes. These checks are free of any charge. Although we do respond to requests for the visits, we prioritise and target groups that our data identifies as being those considered to be at higher risk from accidental dwelling fires. Single parent families, the elderly and persons living in ‘homes of multiple occupations’ are consistently targeted for Home Fire Safety Checks.
Community Safety Department
Service Headquarters
St Nicholas
58 St Johns Road
Newport
Isle of Wight
PO30 1LT
01983 533834 (0900 – 1700)
01983 525121 (1700 – 0900)
fire.communitysafety@iow.gov.ukTesting Your Smoke Detector
The single most important contribution to saving life in a domestic fire is well positioned ‘working’ smoke alarms. The type and number of alarms is determined by the house design and internal layout. Guidance can be obtained about the type of alarm and positioning from the alarm packaging. A leaflet is available from the fire service ‘Smoke Alarms for the home’ or this can be downloaded from the Leaflets link at the bottom of this page.
In 2002, Firefighters in England and Wales attended over 5,000 accidental house fires where smoke detectors were fitted, but failed to work. Taking simple steps can save lives:
Test the battery every week
Replace the battery every year
Clean with a vacuum every six months
Replace the smoke detector every ten years
Safe Routines
These relate to fire safety routines and form part of the Home Fire Safety Checks, most importantly is the night time fire safety routine. This includes unplugging electrical equipment, emptying ashtrays and closing doors before you go to bed. (Leaflet available ‘Fire Safety in the Home’)
In the Event of a Fire
All people living in or sharing the house should be aware of what to do in the event of a fire occurring. The most important thing being to warn all others within the house. We then recommend for everyone to get out of the house and call the fire service, the sooner we get the call the quicker we will arrive to deal with the outbreak. (Leaflet available ‘Fire Safety in the Home’)
Home Fire Escape Plan
Again this is covered in the Home Fire Safety Check. Everyone in the house needs to be aware of the plan that is very specific to the house. (Leaflet available ‘Plan Your Escape’)
What to do if you are Trapped
It is possible that even if you have in place a good fire safety routine that a fire could occur that prevents your escape. With some planning in advance you can survive a fire by having in place some simple steps. This would include selecting an appropriate room in which you can all meet. This room should provide you with an alternative escape route and possibly a window from which you could make your escape. (Leaflet available ‘Plan Your Escape’)
There are various leaflets available for download - Please click here
