National Electrical Safety Month
Each year countless lives are lost and property destroyed by home fires due to negligence, carelessness or the home dweller being unaware of a potential fire hazard. May is National Electrical Safety Month, and The Electrical Safety Foundation International has launched a month long campaign to help raise awareness of potential home electrical fire hazards and to educate people on how to correct common home problems that pose a fire hazard.

According to The Electrical Safety Foundation International, 150 home fires occur every day because of electrical issues. Home fires that could have been prevented by implementing a few safety precautions, and being aware of potential fire hazards.

These are some of the home fire prevention tips that are being promoted during May for National Electrical Safety Month that can help you prevent your home from going up in flames, and perhaps even save your life.

Electrical appliances should always be kept away from damp or hot surfaces, and allow room for enough air circulation for electrical appliances.

Electrical cords that are covered by rugs or furniture, like extension cords and lamp cords, need to be checked regularly for cracks or frays.

Light bulb wattage needs to be correct for the lighting fixture. A light bulb with to much wattage can overheat and cause a fire.

Electrical outlets and switch plates need to be in place and in good shape. Replace any covers that are broken. Place child safety plastic covers in electrical outlets that are not in use to prevent children from placing metal objects into the electrical outlet.

Other signs of home electrical problems that need the attention of a professional electrician are: Lights that are dim or flickering. Lights or electrical outlets that sizzle, buzz or spark when used.

The Electrical Safety Foundation International also wants to raise awareness during the month of May about outdoor electrical safety.

Stay away from a downed power line and anything touching it.

Be aware of overheard power lines, locate them prior to tree trimming, house painting or any other outdoor activity and stay away from them.

Before digging in your yard, call your local utilities company to locate where any underground electrical line might be buried.

Stay away from all pad-mounted transformers.

Things everyone should know, but bears repeating during May's National Electrical Safety Month: Keep space heaters away from anything flammable like curtains and furniture. Test your smoke detector monthly and keep fresh batteries in it.

It’s Safety Time! Safety Games and Activities for Your Family

Safety Time is all about taking time to work safety into your life. Many parents ask at what age is it appropriate to start talking to your children about safety. The answer is that it’s never too early to start integrating safe habits into your family’s daily routine. Here are some activities you can do at home to get your kids focused on being safe.

Take a Safety Tour: Look for UL

Take a tour of your home from your child’s perspective looking for potential hazards and checking for safety. Carry a notebook and keep track of what you find. Fix the problems as you go – putting them off might mean that they don’t get done. (Be sure to tell children to show, not touch, any hazards they find during your tour!)

Look for:

• Sockets with lots of plugs. Try plugging things in differently with appropriate connections. How many overloaded sockets did you find?
• UL Marks on lights, cords and other things that plug in. Just look. How many UL Marks did you find?
• Dangerous things around your home that might cause a fire such as a space heater, matches, or lit candles or fireplaces. Teach kids to tell you when they see these things and to stay away. How many home hazards did you find?
• Holiday decorations that could pose a hazard: Worn or old lights, dangling cords, multiple decorations plugged into one outlet all pose a danger. How many did you find?
• Smoke alarms. There should be one on every floor and near sleeping areas. Test them weekly and replace the batteries twice a year. How many smoke alarms did you find?

When you finish your tour, try these other safety games:

• Have a “find the meeting place” race. Does your family have an outside meeting place where you would all go if there is an emergency or a fire? Race to see who can be the first one there.
• Clutter patrol. Leaving toys, shoes and other items in the hallway and on the stairs can be a falling danger. See who can clean up the most clutter in one minute.

I Spot, I STOP!

One of the best ways for little ones to stay safe is to keep away from dangers. Teach your children to stay away from potential risks by practicing “I Spot, I STOP!” when they see any of these dangers. Take a tour around the house together and look for:

• A burning candle
• The stove and oven
• The garage (or area where tools and chemicals are stored)
• Matches and lighters – if you spot them, move them out of kids’ reach
• Fireplace
• Space heaters
• Electrical outlets
• Medicine
• The pool, spa or hot tub (if your home has one)

Keep a star chart and add a star every time your child says, “I Spot, I STOP!” and stays away from the danger. It doesn’t count if she says it, and then touches anyway! A prize after earning a set number of stars is a great way to graduate from the chart into everyday safety awareness.

Get Out!

Creating a family fire escape plan is essential to safety. Take a few minutes to draw a diagram of your home (you can download one here. Identify at least two exits from each room as well as a family meeting place away from the house. Remind your children that if they see or smell smoke, they should “go low” and crawl to the exit.

Walk with your kids into each room and ask, “How could you get out?” “Now imagine this door is locked shut, how could you get out?” “Imagine the window was locked how could you get out?” Make the game more fun by adding in some playful and silly examples that make them think of alternative exits, e.g., “A giant llama is blocking the door. How could you get out? An elephant is in the front hall. How else could you go?”

Race to the family meeting area and review the fact that the first thing they should always do in case of a fire is get out of the house and never go back inside for any reason.

*An important reminder for parents – In a real fire, you shouldn’t rely on your children to escape safely on their own. Part of your family escape plan should include an adult going to each child’s room and getting everyone out safely.

For more activity ideas, download UL’s Safety Time Activity Book.

Stopping a Fire Before it Starts: 5 Things You Can Do TODAY to Protect Your Family From Fire

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When it comes to fire safety, information abounds. But as a busy parent, it's often hard to find the time to wade through the information and figure out what you need to do to keep your family safer.
Here are five simple things that you can do today to help protect your family from fire.

Do a Smoke Alarm Audit
Do an audit of your home's smoke alarms. (If you don't have UL listed smoke alarms, make a plan to install them on each level of the home, especially near sleeping areas). Check placement: Smoke rises, so smoke alarms should be located on a ceiling or high on a wall. Alarms mounted on the ceiling should be at least four inches away from the nearest wall and those mounted on walls should be four to twelve inches down from the ceiling. Test your alarms and be sure that they can be heard in bedrooms even when the doors are closed. If not, install smoke alarms in the bedrooms. Make sure that your kids know what the alarms sound like. Replace alarms that are older than 10 years and replace any alarm that has been painted over.

Parent Tip: Change the batteries whenever you change the clocks for Daylight Savings Time.

Make Extinguishers Handy
Be sure that you have at least one or more UL listed fire extinguishers in your home. An ABC-type extinguisher is a good all-purpose choice for fires in the home. Check the gauge located on the extinguisher to see if it needs to be replaced or recharged. Also be sure that the fire extinguisher is in an easily accessible location. Remember that fire extinguishers are not designed to fight large or spreading fires. Your number one priority is to have an escape plan and to get out safely. If the fire is small and contained and the room is not filled with smoke, get everyone out and call the fire department; then, you may use the fire extinguisher to control the fire.

Parent Tip: Read the directions and familiarize yourself with the use of your extinguisher now, before you're in the midst of an actual emergency.

Talk Prevention with Your Kids
Talk to your kids about how they can prevent fires. Children under age five are especially curious about fire and need to start learning about the tremendous danger. Take the mystery out of fire and make sure that your kids know the following safety tips:

• Never play with matches, lighters or candles.
• Never play with electrical cords and never put anything in a socket.
• Blankets or clothes should never be thrown on top of lamps.
• Don't turn up a heater without a grown-up's permission.
• If your clothes catch on fire, stop, drop and roll.

Parent Tip: Check under beds and in closets for burned matches or candles. Kids often choose "secret" places to play with matches and light fires. Even "good" kids are curious– teach your kids to always tell you when they find matches and lighters.

Look at Your Home From Your Child's Perspective
Think about how your child sees potential fire hazards in your home by getting down on your hands and knees with them and taking a look around. See any dangling cords that could cause a problem if pulled? Enticing heaters or other appliances? Make adjustments to your home according to what you find.

Parent Tip: Make your floor-tour a game with your kids. Have them point out things they see by playing eye-spy. You'll be surprised by what catches their attention.

Avoid Overloading Sockets and Cords
Do a walk-through of your home. If you see sockets with too many cords plugged in or even too many extension cords around the house, it may be time to have extra outlets installed by a professional. Always pay attention to the acceptable wattage for cords and lamps. Also look for extension cords that are "tacked up" or run under a rug as these could be a real fire hazard for kids and adults.

Parent Tip: The den and the nursery are particularly susceptible to overloaded outlets. Never plug something in unsafely "just this once" or "until I get another power strip tomorrow."

For more useful tips and information, visit the National Fire Protection Association at www.nfpa.org