How to Prepare For a Fire Evacuation

The shrill sound of an alarm goes off in the distance, I look outside and wonder why my alarm would be going off when the sun has not yet risen, as I fumble around in the dark looking for my phone I wake a little and start to recognize that the noise I hear is not my alarm clock but the fire alarm in the building that I live in..

My Thoughts

What? This can’t be happening! I don’t have a plan. Okay, remain calm. I have to get the kids out of bed, dressed and away from the building as fast as I can.

My Husbands Thoughts

It’s a false alarm, roll over, snore.

Facing Reality

Frantically moving from room to room getting the kids dressed, trying to find boots and jackets at 5:30 am is not something I am used to doing, thankfully. However, that doesn’t mean that it is not something I should be prepared to do if needed.

The most important thing for me as a mother besides providing my children with the love I feel for them is to keep them safe. Luckily, even though there was a lingering smell of smoke there was no fire but that does not change the fact that at that exact moment I did not feel confident that I was fulfilling my responsibility of keeping them out of harm’s way.

Plan of Action For A Fire Evacuation

Back in the safety of my home I started to replay the course of events that had happened I knew that I needed to come up with a plan in the event that this ever happens again.

• Stay calm. Being in a state of panic is probably the worst thing that you can do when dealing with any type of a crisis. As hard as it may be to keep level-headed the best thing to do is breathe and think. Having a clear mind will help you remember all of the steps you need to take to get to safety.
• Make a mental list. Knowing what you may need to grab and keeping it in a convenient place by the exit that you will use is very important. Items such as; purse, keys, cell phone, warm blanket although not as important as your safety these are material possessions that can come in handy if needed.
• Have a place for everything and everything in its place. My oldest has a VERY bad habit of just dropping his jacket and taking off his shoes wherever he feels like it; in the bedroom, the bathroom… I swear I have found them in the oddest places. I feel that because of this it took us a lot longer than it should have to evacuate. He now knows the importance of keeping his outdoor belongings where they are supposed to be and hopefully continues to do so.
• Take inventory of exits. Yes, you live in your house. Yes, you see your windows and doors everyday but how often do you sit there and think “I could go out that window if I had to.” Knowing the nooks and crannies of the windows and doors in your home and asking yourself a few questions, for example; how you’ll climb down from a second story window and what you’ll use to break that window if need be. As important as it may not seem, asking yourself these types of questions is key for your well-being.
• Have a back-up. An escape route is essential but what happens when there is something blocking that exit. In the event of a fire, door handles can get burning hot; flames could be blocking your way out, you need to come up with an alternative plan.
• Now that you have a plan, great! However, make sure EVERY ONE in your household knows what that plan is ahead of time. Having to stay focused and bark out orders to others that don’t have a clue can be tricky plus knowing in advance what to expect may help with any level of anxiety they may feel from the situation, especially children.

I have to admit being woken up so early in the morning when I didn’t have to be did aggravate me at the time. However, now I just see our little fire “drill” as a blessing in disguise, it has given me the kick in the butt I needed to talk to my children about fire safety as well as come up with a plan of action if we should ever need it.

Do you and your family have a fire evacuation plan?