FIRE SAFETY

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FIRE SAFETY

• Presented by the
• South Australia Police

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OBJECTIVES

• Discuss
• Fire Hazards
• Fire Danger Season
• Total Fire Ban Days
• Strategies to Stay Safe
• Arson
• Consequences for Illegal Lighting of Fires
• Reporting Offences
• First Aid Treatment

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FIRE HAZARDS

• Rubbish
• Oily rags
• Things placed too close to a heater
• Open fire places/stoves
• Unattended cooking
• Matches left in reach of children

• Faulty electrical cords/appliances
• Dirty lint filters
• Appliances left on
• Blocked chimneys
• Lit cigarette butts
• Unattended candles

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FIRE DANGER SEASON

• South Australia is one of the driest, fire-prone
  regions in the world. Heat and dry vegetation
  make bushfires a greater risk in Summer and so
  during Fire Danger Season there are strict
  controls about the lighting of fires and the use
  of certain tools in the open.

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FIRE DANGER SEASON

• Do not light open fires.
• There are fire restrictions on the lighting of
  open fires throughout the whole state.

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FIRE DANGER SEASON

• If during FDS it is not a Total Fire Ban Day you
  may have a BBQ or campfire provided
• You have an appropriate agent to extinguish.
• Fire is in a - properly constructed fireplace
  e.g. portable cooking appliance or trench at
  least 30 cm deep.
• The ground is cleared at least 4 metres around
  and above fire.
• Fire is less than 1 square metre.
• An adult is present at all times.
• The fire is completely out before leaving.

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TOTAL FIRE BAN DAY

• Fires are banned completely.
• You must not use certain cutting tools (e.g.
  angle grinders and welders).
• Gas fires, gas kettles/BBQs and electrical
  appliances may be used outdoors only if
• Within 15 metres of domestic premises or the
  coastal foreshore.
• The ground is cleared at least 4 metres around
  and above the fire.
• A responsible person is present with an
  extinguishing agent.

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FIRE DANGER SEASON

• On Total Fire Ban Days or during the Fire Danger
  Season report anyone you see lighting a fire out
  in the open to an adult or the Police.

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STRATEGIES TO STAY SAFEIn a Bushfire - in a house

• Wear protective clothing
• Close all doors windows
• Block gaps with wet towels/blankets
• Fill sinks have buckets nearby
• Block pipes with rags fill gutters with water

• Shelter in the room furthest from approaching
  fire
• After the fire passes check to see if any small
  fires have started
• If the house is on fire, cover exposed skin
  move onto burnt ground

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STRATEGIES TO STAY SAFEIn a Bushfire - in a car

• Do not drive through thick smoke
• Stop car on bare ground/least undergrowth, off of
  a roadway
• Wind up windows/close air vents
• Turn off the ignition
• Turn on the lights

• Shelter from radiant heat by lying on floor and
  covering yourself with a blanket
• Stay in the car until main fire front passes
• When you get out, cover all exposed skin, move
  away from the car stay on bare/burnt ground

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STRATEGIES TO STAY SAFEIn a Bushfire on foot

• Do not run uphill/away from the fire unless you
  know of a safe refuge
• Do not run through the fire front
• Choose an open space/clearing/track
• Clear away flammable material

• Cover all exposed skin
• Seek shelter from radiant heat behind a log or
  rock or depression in the ground
• Lie face down on the ground

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STRATEGIES TO STAY SAFEIn a Bushfire Personal
Protection

• Radiant heat is the chief killer. Basic
  principles are to shelter from radiant heat and
  do not panic.
• In a severe fire the air temperature near the
  ground remains relatively cool although
  uncomfortable to breath, there is enough oxygen
  in the air to survive.
• Avoid bushfires curiosity could endanger your
  life.

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STRATEGIES TO STAY SAFEIn a Bushfire Clothing

• Cover all exposed skin to protect yourself from
  radiant heat.
• Wear clothing made from natural materials wool
  or cotton. Synthetics can melt and stick to your
  skin.
• Wear long sleeved shirt and long trousers.
• Wear solid shoes and a hat.
• Use a handkerchief/triangular bandage/cloth over
  the nose to prevent smoke inhalation.

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Break
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HOME FIRE ESCAPE PLAN

• Everyone should have a Home Fire Escape Plan so
  that they know how to get out of the house
  quickly and safely in the case of fire.

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HOME FIRE ESCAPE PLAN

• Considerations
• Where possible have 2 ways to get out of each
  room.
• Know how to alert others.
• Get out when the smoke alarm sounds.
• Have a meeting place when you get out.
• How to crawl in smoke.

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HOME FIRE ESCAPE PLAN

• Considerations cont
• Know how to unlock doors windows.
• Leave keys in deadlocks when someone is home.
• Get out stay out.
• Once out call 000.
• Have someone wait near the road to meet fire
  service.
• Practise the Home Fire Escape Plan.

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SMOKE ALARMS

• Every home must have smoke alarms. They give
  early warning signs of fire, allow time to escape
  safely. For information about the type, number
  and location of smoke alarms phone the SA
  Metropolitan Fire Service.

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SMOKE ALARMS

• Test smoke alarms once a month. Press the test
  button and the smoke alarm should sound.
• 9V batteries should be changed every 12
  months. Change when daylight saving finishes or
  when a low power warning beep sounds.
• Clean every 6 months with the soft attachment on
  the vacuum cleaner.

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STRATEGIES TO STAY SAFE

• In a House fire
• Get out as quickly as possible
• Alert others as you leave
• Go to your meeting place
• Do not go back into the house
• Ring 000 for the fire service

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STRATEGIES TO STAY SAFE

• If Your Clothes Are On Fire
• STOP, COVER, DROP, ROLL
• STOP where you are. Do not run.
• COVER cover your face with your hands (heat
  rises and the most tender skin is on your face)
• DROP onto the ground
• ROLL over several times (roll on the ground
  whatever part of your clothing is on fire)

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STRATEGIES TO STAY SAFE

• Get Down Low and
• GO! GO! GO!
• Smoke is not good air, it is hot and dirty and
  will choke you. If you crawl down low you will
  find cooler, cleaner air to breathe as you
  escape.

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ARSON

• Anyone who lights a fire with the intention of
  damaging property of another person or who
  doesnt care if they damage the property of
  another person commits a criminal offence called
  Arson which is treated very seriously by the
  courts.
• Small fires spread and grow and get out of
  control very quickly, developing into a blaze
  putting life and property at risk.

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ARSONPenalties

• Adults
• 18 months imprisonment life imprisonment (if
  the damage is over 30,000).
• Even if the fire is put out before it has done
  too much damage the person is charged with the
  full value of the property.

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ARSONPenalties

• Youth
• Dealt with in accordance to the Juvenile Justice
  System (Young Offenders Act 1994).
• Where the Youth admits to the offence, Serious
  offences are dealt with by Family Conferences.
  Offender may be required to compensate the victim
  up to 20,000, do up to 300 hours community
  service, or any other undertaking imposed as
  agreed to.
• If the youth does not admit to the offence, the
  matter will be heard in the Youth Court. Up to
  500 hours community service, up to 2,000 fine
  may be imposed or detention/home detention.

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CONSEQUENCES FOR OFFENDING

• Fostering or adopting a child may be denied
• May effect getting a Firearms Licence a
  Security Licence
• May effect getting a loan or insurance

• Hard to get a job
• Government agencies, Apprenticeship Board Armed
  Forces have access to police records
• Travel visas may be denied

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REPORTING A FIRE OR SUSPICIOUS BEHAVIOUR

• 000
• For emergency services,
• Fire, Ambulance Police.
• 000 is free and traceable.

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REPORTING A FIRE OR SUSPICIOUS BEHAVIOUR

• Bank SA Crime Stoppers 1800 333 000
• Police need help to solve and prevent crime and
  detect people such as Arsonists who light fires.
• Call Bank SA Crime Stoppers anonymously.
• Rewards of up to 10,000 are offered.
• Remember See something, Hear something, Say
  something!
• Call 1800 333 000

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FIRST AID TREATMENT

• An exposure to a heat source can injure skin.
  This injury is called a burn. Heat sources
  include
• A flame
• Hot surfaces
• Hot liquids
• Chemicals
• Electricity
• The sun

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FIRST AID TREATMENTWhat to do

• Extinguish the flame.
• Immerse or flood the burn area in cold water for
  15 20 minutes.
• Never use butter, ointment or ice.
• Cover burn preferably with clean gladwrap or a
  clean non-fluffy cloth .
• Keep the injured person warm.
• See a Doctor if the burn is on the face, hands,
  feet, joint, genitals, in the mouth or throat or
  if there are any blisters.
• Internal burns/scalds (sustained from swallowing
  chemicals or very hot food or fluids) can be
  serious.
• SEEK MEDICAL ATTENTION

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SUMMARY

• We have briefly discussed
• Fire Hazards
• Fire Danger Season
• Total Fire Ban Days
• Strategies to Stay Safe
• Arson
• Consequences for Illegal
• Lighting of Fires
• Reporting Offences
• First Aid Treatment