Municipal Affairs
December 17, 2015

Public Advisory: The 12 Days of Fire Safety - Day Seven

Children and youth are often the centre of attention during the holiday season. As families enjoy a variety of Christmas activities, they should keep fire safety top of mind.

There are many precautions which can be taken to help protect children. These precautions are especially important for individuals who don't normally have children in their homes but will over the holidays, including:

• Never allow children to play with matches, lighters, or candles;
• Never leave children unsupervised around a fireplace, wood stove, or space heater. Consider installing safety gates around these potential hazards especially when children are young;
• Ensure a smoke alarm is installed on every level of your home, as well as in every bedroom and in the hallway or room outside each sleeping area;
• Review your emergency plan and remind children never to hide during a fire and, even if it's snowing outside, to always evacuate to your designated family meeting place;
• Teach children to dial 911 when there is a fire or emergency; and
• Review general fire safety tips with youth who are living away from home for the first time.

All residents of the province are invited to visit @FES_GovNL Twitter during the 12 Days of Fire Safety to complete our fire safety quiz for the chance to win an emergency preparedness kit.

For more information about fire safety and emergency preparedness, visit the FES-NL website: www.gov.nl.ca/fes/index.html

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Media contact:

Ryan Crocker Media Relations Manager Fire and Emergency Services-Newfoundland and Labrador 709-729-0857, 709-690-1810 ryancrocker@gov.nl.ca

2015 12 17                              2:25 p.m.