Message from The Area Coordinator
All those who attended the talk at the last meeting from the Logan House Fire Support Network were agreed what an informative evening it was Louie & Christine deserve many thanks for their dedicated hard work in the face of such tragedies which are becoming too numerous. They have a wide range of smoke alarms, blankets etc which can be purchased from them at less than you would pay at the large retailers. So when you need to replace an item please consider contacting them for these necessary items and in doing so help pre-vent a possible fire. As suggested at the meeting when you are going to buy a birthday/Christmas present for someone why not think of getting something that is both necessary & life saving? Much better than a bunch of flowers or bottle of after shave & will last much longer!! This news-letter has many of the tips given at the meeting but for further details please contact louie@lhfsn.com 0411 826 114 or Christine@lhfsn.com 0407 645 531 more information & items mentioned from www.loganhousefiresupportnetwork.com
We are about to start planning the next Road Safety Expo to be held in August 2016 in line with the QPS road safety week. Date & venue to be arranged, but will keep you updated with plans as they develop. Our next meeting has an officer from Crestmead Police Station talking about the drug Ice epidemic. This will be very important for all since it is such a growing & destructive crime. Our next few meetings may not have speakers ar-ranged but we hope to welcome the new officer in charge to Crestmead Station at our August meet-ing. Crestmead Community Carols this year will be held on Saturday December 5th at Pinnington Park so please mark your calendars for this family event hopefully the rain will not affect us this year! Take care Geoff
LOGAN HOUSE FIRE SUPPORT NETWORK
Following Australia’s worst ever house fire at Slacks Creek in August 2011, Louie & Christine visited the scene & offered what condolences they could. How-ever with continuing events, they could see the need for some form of support help & in June 2014 they registered the LHFSN. Since July 1st 2014 there have been 41 house fires in Logan with 16 of those as a total loss. Recently they have linked with the Qld Fire & Emergency Services to promote the “GET OUT - FIRE ABOUT” slogan where you are encouraged to plan an escape route in the event of a fire would you know how to get out of your home in pitch black (could happen at night & don’t forget the electricity will be cut), with choking, acrid smoke affecting your breathing & vision? Get into the habit of your family knowing where to assemble if they need to evacuate, how quickly they can get out & what alternative methods there are of leaving the house should the doorways be blocked.
Of course a priority would be to have smoke alarms fitted throughout your home not just in the kitchen but at exit points for all bedrooms & if you live in a 2 storey home there should be alarms on each floor.
IONISATION SMOKE ALARMS are useless unless you want one to go off when the toast burns! It “smells” the burning whereas a PHOTOELECTRIC SMOKE ALARM actually “sees the smoke. So if a fire has smoldered for say 3 hours, you would be ren-dered in a deep sleep from the toxic smell of the fire obvious which alarm would work. The North-ern Territory government mandated in 2011 to only allow photoelectric alarms & it is actually illegal for commercial buildings to have an ionization alarm. It can take up to 3 - 4 hours for an ionization alarm to activate with toxic smoke too late for many people.
With the cost of photoelectric alarms around $20 & $40 for a 10 year lithium battery alarm how much do you value the life of your family, pets & yourself?
Many rental properties have ionization alarms (up to 70% in housing commission homes) so it worth ask-ing the landlord or rental agent to change it. You need to check the alarm batteries on an annual basis.
POINTS TO REMEMBER
- Heaters are put away for 6 months or more so you need to have it plugged into a surge pro-tector if possible if there is a problem then it will cut in. It is not normally worthwhile to get them repaired so throw out rather than take a chance.
- Electric blankets should not be left on over-night try & avoid buying second hand elec-trical items if possible.
- Recharge devices do not leave on overnight, just use during the day since it can overheat.
- Do not leave I Pads & phones under pillows since this raises the likelihood of fire.
- Check your alarm once a month by pushing the check button (with a broom handle or you can buy a special probe from LHFSN)
- If you have Crimsafe as your security screen-ing it can be kicked out but cannot be kicked in worth noting if you are thinking of updat-ing. Should also have one window that can be opened from inside in case of an emergency.
- Insurance if you cannot afford both at least insure your home if not the contents. This will allow you to have some property to start over again in the worst case—many people who are uninsured have only the clothes they escaped in & no chance of owning their home again.
- Fire blankets should be in the kitchen size 1.8 x 1.2 are recommended whereas a 1.1 size would not cover your arms if you are trying to smother a fire. Also have one at the BBQ.
- Extinguishers—have a small one in the car ($15) & a larger one in the kitchen ($70).
