If You Are In a Fire....

NY Post

With the horrific news of the fire in New York City that has killed 19 -- including 9 children -- I thought a few recommendations might be helpful should you ever find yourself in this awful situation. 

I have been in a fire in a high rise. I was living on the eighth floor and the fire was on the 4th. It occurred at 4:30 in the morning. 

• Keep your clothes next to your bed at night. You never know (fire, tornado, earthquake) when you may need to quickly don them. 
• Keep fire extinguishers next to your bed and in the kitchen. If in doubt, use them! 
• Smoke is so think you cannot see your hand in front of your face. Usually, you can't safely escape by walking. Even if you could, the smoke and heat may seriously damage your lungs. Crawl. 
• Teach your children the above. Plus, please teach them to meet you at a certain spot outdoors. Rehearse this!
• Then, once you are safe outdoors, call 9-1-1. Don't waste time inside calling the fire department, unless someone in your family is trapped. 

If you have any concerns about your health condition call am ambulance or allow the firemen to do so. People have died because of non-obvious lung or related cardiac injuries. 

In Wichita, rooms in basements require a fire escape. This is usually done via a "garden window." Rehearse using it to escape. Put a short stepladder into the well on the side of the "window" near the release latch. If a child is not strong enough to lift the window, they should not occupy a bedroom in that location.