Home Fire Safety for People with Physical Limitations

Safety for the High Risk

You’ve heard the old saying about an ounce of prevention being worth a pound of cure. That ounce of prevention plays an even more vital role for people with physical limitations, especially if they live alone. Even if the disabled or elderly person lives with family members or an on-site caretaker, special precautions are twice as important simply because of the logistics of evacuating the home.

Which brings us back to the smoke alarm. There are special smoke alarm adaptations designed specifically for physical limitations. For the deaf or hard of hearing, smoke alarms can be purchased with a vibrating pad or flashing light. Smoke alarms with strobe lights outside the home alert neighbors or passers-by of the problem in the home.

Independence is important to both those with physical limitations and the elderly. But the fact remains that, as a group, they are at greater risk. They cannot react as quickly; medications may be involved with side effects that limit the ability to make quick decisions. As important as independence may be, survival is more important.

Don’t be reluctant to ask for help. The local fire department should be able to help with escape plans as well as conduct a home fire safety inspection and offer suggestions on smoke alarm placement and other safety equipment. Also, you can provide your special needs information to the local emergency service providers.

If you have mobility difficulties and use a walker or wheelchair, check all the exits to make sure the equipment can easily get through all doorways. Ramps at exterior doors will also make evacuation quicker and safer. Also consider locating bedrooms for people with mobility issues on the ground floor, near an exit. You may be able to put up with some inconveniences in your daily life, but during a home fire, those minor inconveniences can slow the evacuation process down to a lethal pace.

Other specific recommendations include:

• Specific rooms in the home, activities and appliances have been identified as danger zones. Be especially aware of these zones.
• Most kitchen fires start when the cook leaves a lit stove or oven unattended. It would be worth the effort to make the kitchen a comfortable place to sit as well as a safe place to cook.
• Loose clothing may be comfortable, but can also be dangerous around the flame of a gas range top.
• Cooking oil fires can be extinguished simply by putting a lid on the pan and turning off the burner. Water will only spread the fire. Be especially careful to keep range tops clear of spattered oil and grease.
• Do not leave smoking materials unattended. Use safety ashtrays with wide lips. Empty ash trays in the toilet or metal container, not a wastebasket. Never smoke in bed,  that includes catnaps on the sofa.
• Use only UL approved space heaters and use only the recommended fuel in each heater as well as observe the manufacturer’s recommendations on placement. There should be a three-foot distance between space heaters and combustible materials like drapes or upholstered furniture.
• Do not use electric space heaters in the bathroom or other wet areas.
• Space heaters are not end tables. Do not put anything on top of them.

Tagged as: fire evacuation elderly, fire safety disabled and elderly, People with Physical Limitations