It is unfortunate that we have to write articles like this but it should serve as a reminder that life is short, it can in fact happen to you and when involved in a house or apartment fire you only have seconds to vacate the property. As weather changes to the colder winter temperatures, we burn more fuel and whether it is natural gas or other method to warm our homes, we also invite two of the ingredients into our homes. Heat and fuel. With these two invited guests, we also invite a third unwanted and often undetected guest which is a byproduct of the first two, carbon monoxide.
An increase of injuries, loss of property and senseless deaths of people often are caused due to the lack of preparation when burning fossil fuels used for heating with space heaters and improper space heater location. The woman injured during the fire at the Stone Mountain apartments at Liberty Landings is fortunate to be alive! Had it not been for her several rescuers, she probably would have either died in the fire or would have sustained injuries from the jump needed from the 3rd floor apartment. When you consider a 3rd floor apartment, you need to consider your evacuation plan. She is fortunate, she may have lost everything, but she is recovering from her burns at the hospital and is alive today, unfortunately this is not true for all fire victims.
As it happens every year in the Atlanta area, an apartment fire will be the cause of a child's death and children die from the lack of smoke detectors or mistakes made with the placement of space heaters. Often apartment landlords could have done more to avoid the fire or death's caused with proper escape routes. I hate stories like this, mostly because they are avoidable with a little attention made to the proper placement of space heaters and working smoke detectors attached to monitored security systems.
Stone Mountain and Norcross are not the only Atlanta area that are burning, today a 90 Year Old Man Died in a Clayton County house fire. In Canton, several businesses burn or while at her son's home a Clayton County home goes up in flames. Those are just a few reminders. To avoid making similar mistakes, you also need to regularly;
- Check your smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. Check them regularly and have your smoke detectors connected to a monitored security system. If you do not have them, install them today!
- Make sure they are attached to your security system. If you need assistance, we are glad to help.
- Make sure you have an escape or evacuation plan for your structure and your children know it.
Don't be a fire victim this year!
