Is your home safe from fire hazards?

Is

your home safe from fire hazards?

Each year in

the US, about 12,000 children 14 years of age and under are injured in

residential fires. Preschool children die in fires at twice the national

rate.

It is estimated

that a home fire occurs every 66 seconds nationally. Ninety percent of

fire deaths involving children occur in homes without working smoke alarms.

An estimated 92 percent of American homes contain smoke alarms, but about

1/3 of them don't work or are missing charged batteries.

To protect

your family, you should:

* Have a smoke

alarm near, or inside bedrooms and on every floor or level of your home.

Test the alarms once a month, and change the batteries once a year. New

10-year detectors, which use lithium batteries, cost about $5 to $30 and

can be found at most hardware and discount stores.

* Practice

different ways to get out of the house during a fire, and agree on a safe

place to meet outside.

* Do not smoke

inside your home.

* Make sure

everyone in your family knows the STOP, DROP, and ROLL procedure in case

their clothes catch on fire.

* Keep matches

and lighters out of reach from children.

For More Information:

* Call the

US Consumer Product Safety Commission's hotline at 1-800-638-2772 TDD:

1-800-638-8270, or visit its web site at https://www.cpsc.gov.

* Call the

Fayette County Department of Fire and Emergency Services ay 770-461-1321,

ext. 5414, or visit its web site at www.admin.co.fayette.ga.us/FIRE/default.htm .

The countywide

burning ban is in effect from May 1 until Oct. 1 each year. Call 770-461-1321,

ext. 5468, for a burn permit.