Samford addresses TAGHS on fire prevention

Jason Samford, Training and Safety Officer for the Timpson Volunteer Fire Department, spoke about fire prevention at the October monthly meeting of the Timpson Area Genealogical and Heritage Society (TAGHS).

“The top three causes of accidental death in America are auto accidents, falls, and fires,” Samford began. “The number one cause of fires in the home is cooking. Forty-six percent of home fires are started by cooking,” he said, prompting an immediate response from a member who asked, “Does that mean I can go home and tell my husband that I can’t cook anymore?”

“Tell him he’ll be having sandwiches from now on,” Samford laughed.

“Two very important types of equipment every home should have are smoke detectors and fire extinguishers. Every room in your house should have a smoke detector and the batteries should be replaced if the unit starts beeping. Replace the batteries annually, even if the unit doesn’t start beeping. Make sure kids or grandkids know what the smoke detector alarm sounds like and what they should do if it goes off”, Samford declared.

“There should be an escape route for every room. Closing all doors in the house at night helps to prevent the spread of a fire if one occurs. In the event of a fire, check to see if the handle on a door is hot before opening it. If it’s hot, the fire is on the other side of the door. Do not open it and find a different route out.

If the room is filled with smoke, get on your hands and knees and crawl. If there is fresh air in the room, it will be near the floor. Once you are out of the house, stay out. Do not re-enter the home in an effort to save pets”, Samford emphasized. “Many people lose their lives attempting to save their pets in during a fire. We love them but a human life is more valuable than that of an animal.”

“Everyone in the home should know the location of fire extinguishers. Fire extinguishers should be checked annually to ensure that they are still charged and replaced every ten years. The Timpson Volunteer Fire Department will visit your home to inspect your fire extinguishers and look for potential fire hazards such an accumulation of combustible materials or frayed wires at no charge. We have applied for a grant that will fund our giving out free smoke detectors to families who don’t have one. We will let the community know if that grant is approved,” Samford continued.

“We recently received a new piece of fire-fighting equipment which was donated to us by the Forest Service. It is a two-and-a-half ton four-wheel-drive vehicle we call Bear One. It was olive drab when we got it, so we had it painted Timpson Bear Gold and rigged out with enough lights to light up New Your City! It has a 300-gallon water tank and can actually go through brush to get to fires that our other vehicles can’t reach. If you’d like to see it or any of our other equipment just stop by and we’ll show you around. The public is always welcome and who knows, you might decide you’d like to join the Timpson Volunteer Fire Department,” Samford concluded.

TAGHS meets at 2 p.m. on the third Wednesday of each month in the meeting room of the Timpson Public Library located on the corner of Austin and Bremond Streets.

The public is always welcome.