The Wichita Fire Department has activities planned for Fire Prevention Week, October 6th through the 12th.
The theme for the week is “Smoke Alarms: Make them work for you,” and fire officials are calling attention to the importance of having a working smoke alarm in the home.
Firefighters had activities at the Sedgwick County Zoo on Tuesday, and they will be at the Northwest YMCA on Wednesday. They will appear at coffee shops across Wichita on Friday and city fire marshal Chris Dugan said all fire stations will have open houses on Saturday.
The Fire Department has safety tips for residents to follow as temperatures get colder:
• Keep anything that can burn at least three feet away from heating equipment, like the furnace, fireplace, wood stove, or portable space heater.
• Have a three foot “kid-free zone” around open fires and space heaters.
• Never use your oven to heat your home.
• Have a qualified professional install stationary space heating equipment, water heaters or central heating equipment according to the local codes and manufacturer’s instructions.
• Have heating equipment and chimneys cleaned and inspected every year by a qualified professional.
• Remember to turn portable heaters off when leaving the room or going to bed.
• Always use the right kind of fuel, specified by the manufacturer, for fuel burning space heaters.
• Make sure the fireplace has a sturdy screen to stop sparks from flying into the room. Ashes should be cool before putting them in a metal container. Keep the container a safe distance away from your home.
• Test smoke alarms at least once a month.
