CAMP LEJEUNE, N.C. -- Fire prevention week is Oct. 8th to Oct. 14th and the National Fire Protection Association wants to raise awareness for fire safety.
“Fire safety is important because everyone has a part in fire safety,” said Nicholas Perozzi, a fire protection inspector with fire and emergency services on Marine Corps Base Camp Lejeune.
The NFPA produces a yearly slogan, this year’s slogan is “Every second counts, plan two ways out!” The meaning of this slogan is have more than one escape plan from your house in case of a fire because as they say: “every second counts.”
When choosing a smoke alarm, be sure to pick one that will wake you up in case you and your family are sleeping.
“Make sure you test your smoke alarms with your children present because children can sometimes hide from sounds they don’t know,” said Perozzi. “Sometimes children don’t wake up for fire alarms because they sleep so soundly.”
One of the most important things to do in the event of a fire or other emergency is to call emergency services as quickly as possible.
“Time is your biggest enemy when it comes to fire,” said Perozzi. “A house could fill up with smoke very quickly, with the material houses are made of these days, it’s a very cheap material that puts off a lot of toxic smoke and if you’re in a house trying to put out that fire and you haven’t even called us yet then you’re putting us and yourself behind the eight ball.”
With the advent of social media, spreading fire awareness has never been easier with fire departments being able to make a simple post about fire safety and prevention.
“There will always be a need for firefighters because no matter what because even if you follow all the rules and regulations, there’s always going to be things that are outside of your control,” said Perozzi. “You can’t control lighting striking your house and catching something on fire. There’s so much more that we do these days than putting out fires.”