New York Injury Talk Blog

For Fire Prevention Week, observed from October 9 to October 15, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) and the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) urged families to put together and practice plans for prevention and emergency evacuations.

According to CPSC numbers, more than 386,000 unintended fires have occurred in residences each year from 2006 to 2008. Each of those years, personal injury for those accidents was tallied at more than 12,500 counts, while fatalities were around 2,400.

Fire Prevention Week emphasizes the importance of preparedness in preventing injury, fatality, and other damages. The agencies offered the following rules for families to follow, as well as several more on a release by the CPSC:

• Be safe in the kitchen: Cooking accidents are the leading cause of home fires, and kitchen devices were involved in the biggest number of blazes accounted for by fire departments in 2006 to 2008. During that period, the CPSC calculates a yearly medium of around 150,000 kitchen fires which is almost 40-percent of all accidental home fires, causing approximately 150 fatalities each year.
• Be careful with fireplaces: Get them fully inspected by a professional each year to ensure they are safe to use. Always keep ashes in a covered, flame resistant receptacle away from anything that’s flammable. Discard ashes very cautiously and keep them far from leaves, garbage, or other items that may catch fire.

Other key rules included installing and properly using smoke alarms and developing a well planned and rehearsed evacuation plan. If you or a family member has been injured in a fire resulting from another party’s neglect, contact the fire accident injury attorneys in New York City with Wingate, Rusotti & Shapiro. Call (212) 986-7353 to receive a free case review from an attorney today.