Eden Prairie residents are encouraged to brush up on home fire safety during Fire Prevention Week.
This year’s Fire Prevention Week runs Oct. 5-11 and places a special focus on lithium-ion battery use and disposal. The annual national campaign, sponsored by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), is observed by fire departments across the country.
Fire Chief Scott Gerber said that while this week highlights prevention, the Eden Prairie Fire Department spends the entire year educating school-aged children and adults about fire safety.
“We’ve had a Prevention Division for a lot of years, and we spend a lot of focus around prevention, not just during Fire Prevention Week, but really throughout the year,” Gerber said. “Focusing on prevention and life safety inspections throughout our business community, as well as our rental community and our rental businesses throughout the city, and our hazardous materials businesses.”
Cooking and smoking top fire causes
Public education is at the forefront of fire prevention, said fire inspector Jeff Carrane. The fire department educates all age groups, focusing on different aspects depending on the audience.
“We don’t talk to kids much about cooking safety, and by the time they get to high school, we have to reteach some things,” Carrane said. “When we reach adulthood and older living communities, messaging changes, but the themes always stay the same.”
Gerber said the most common cause of fires in Minnesota is distracted cooking – when people use their phone or start another task while something is on the stove.
These fires can spread beyond the stove into cabinetry and the rest of the kitchen if left unattended, Gerber said.
The most common cause of fatal fires in Minnesota is smoking, Gerber said. To prevent them, make sure cigarettes and other smoking materials are completely extinguished before being thrown away.
Carrane said throwing away things like fireworks before they are fully extinguished is also a common way fires start.
Make a plan and check smoke detectors
Gerber said it is important to have an up-to-date smoke detector and to regularly check that it is working properly. During school visits, fire inspectors encourage students to go home and test their smoke detectors with their parents.
Carrane said at the start of the school year, students do fire drills to make sure everyone knows what to do and where to go in the event of a fire, but it is much less common to do them in the home.
“We really encourage kids to go home and kind of be a catalyst and educate their families to say, ‘Hey, we have to do this. We have to talk about this. We have to have a plan,'” Carrane said.
Setting a meeting place in the event of a fire is crucial so that all family members know where to go in case of an emergency, Carrane said. Meeting places should be away from the house but not at a fire hydrant or in the street so families are not in the way of firefighters.
Gerber said a noticeable landmark or a neighbor’s house is a good meeting place in the event of a fire.
Lithium-ion battery safety
Proper use and charging of lithium-ion batteries is important for preventing fires, Gerber said. Many everyday products – such as phones, tablets, laptops, and power tools — use lithium-ion batteries.
When buying products that use these batteries, it’s important to check that they’ve been tested for safety, Gerber said. Products marked with “UL” for Underwriters Laboratories have been tested and are safe to use.
Charging habits are a big factor in fire prevention, Gerber said. Charging batteries on a hard surface helps prevent fires.
Another cause of lithium-battery fires is the kind of charging cable used, Gerber said. When buying a new cord, many consumers choose one made by a different manufacturer than their device, which increases the risk of a fire.
“We see fires happen when they’re not charged appropriately, and they’re charged with a different type of cord,” Gerber said.
Proper disposal is also important, though it can be difficult to find places that accept used batteries, Gerber said. Hennepin County collects household hazardous waste, including batteries.
Putting them directly in the trash can cause fires because they get crushed in the garbage truck, Carrane said. Damage can cause the batteries to ignite.
“One of the biggest causes of a lithium-ion battery starting on fire is physical damage,” Carrane said. “So think about that around the house as well. We’re dropping things, stacking things on top of each other in the process of moving, if we’re throwing boxes around – that type of stuff, that can all damage a battery.”
Sprinklers and other safeguards
Gerber said families should consider installing an at-home fire sprinkler system, like those in commercial buildings or apartments, to help stop the spread of a fire. It takes time for firefighters to reach a home after a 911 call is made, so in-home sprinklers can help limit damage before crews arrive.
It is also important for people to sleep with their door closed, another prominent campaign for Fire Prevention Week over the years, Gerber said. Closing the door before bed helps slow the spread of fires into bedrooms, keeping people safe.
Carrane said families should practice their fire safety plan to make sure everyone knows what to do in the event of a fire.
“Have an escape plan. Have a meeting place. Make sure that you know everyone in the family is on the same page with that,” Carrane said. “Just making sure everyone in the family is on the same page is going to go a long way for us.”
