Teaching Home Safety for People with IDD during Fire Safety Month
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To kick off Fire Safety Month this October, we’ve compiled three crucial fire-related home safety procedures and 7 additional home safety procedures for you to think through and teach your young adult, so they know how to live safely on their own. Empower your child with the safety information that gives you peace of mind!
Have a Fire Escape Plan
Does your child have a safe meeting place in case of a fire? Does your child know to NEVER go back into a burning building? Are you checking the smoke detector batteries twice each year? Does your child know two ways out of every room? Can they move quickly enough to get out in under 2 minutes? Have they practiced getting low and moving to the exits in case there is smoke? If not, today is a great day to make your Fire Escape Plan and most importantly PRACTICE it.
Making a fire escape plan comes down to 3 steps:
1. Know where to go
2. Check smoke alarms
3. Do the drill.
Use the home fire escape plan from ready.gov and practice escaping in under 2 minutes with their free timer on the Make Safe Happen app.
Use a Fire Extinguisher
According to the CDC, cooking is the main cause of home fires. Keep a multipurpose fire extinguisher in an easily accessible place in your child’s kitchen. Watch videos on how to properly use one. Buy an extra extinguisher and have your child practice using it. Head outside, put up a picture of flames and have them practice aiming and depressing the valve so they get the feel of how hard they need to press and how to aim the nozzle. Don’t forget to replace the extinguishers as needed before their expiration date!
Use Diffusers, Not Candles
Skip the open flames and opt for a diffuser instead. Your child can choose a waterless diffuser or reed diffuser for less maintenance and still get just about any scent under the sun they’d like.
Perform First Aid Kit
Basic first aid is a great skill for your child to have when they’re living on their own. Accidents can happen during cooking or around the house and having the information for what to do when waiting for medical professionals to arrive could make all the difference.
Consider taking a First Aid Training Class with your child from the American Red Cross. You’ll both learn basic “hows” and “whys” behind basic first aid skills. Definitely use the first aid training class locator and attend an in-person classroom training for instruction and hands-on practice.
Know Emergency Information
Do they have their street address memorized? Could they recall it if they were in a state of panic or an emergency? Does your child know the number for poison control? If there’s suspicious activity by their home, can they call the non-emergency police line? Do they know their pharmacy phone number? What about their medication side effects or allergies?
Hang an Important Information Safety Sheet from Accessible Adulthood on their fridge so they know exactly where to go if they need it.
Close Blinds and Curtains
When the sun is starting to set, close the blinds and curtains. Take and evening walk with your child and show them how when it starts to get dark, people from outside can see in their home and that’s why it is safest to close your blinds and curtains at dusk.
Lock Doors and Windows
Teach your child the habit of immediately locking the front door behind them when they get into their home. If they’re not sitting by an open window enjoying the breeze, then go ahead and close it and lock it. Before bed double check that exterior doors and windows are all locked.
Leave a Light on When You Leave
If your child heads out for activities and could potentially get back when it’s dark, teach them to leave a light on inside and at your front door. Not only do lights make your house less susceptible to burglary, but it also makes it easier to see when you’re getting home to put your key in the door and getting into your home.
Use a Video Doorbell or Peephole
If your child’s front door has a peephole, teach them to quietly look through and check any visitors knocking on their door before speaking to them or unlocking the door for them. Consider installing a video doorbell program which sends an alert straight to their phone when someone approaches the door. They can open the alert to see a live video and depending on the program, they can talk through the doorbell to the visitor without ever unlocking their door. This video doorbell from Blink integrates with Amazon Alexa and has over 47,000 five-star reviews.
Install Motion Lights
Depending where your child’s home is and what the surroundings look like (e.g. wooded, dark, etc.) you may want to install motion detection lights. Any movement and that bright light pops on illuminating whatever triggered the sensor. Some motion lights even have the ability to send text alerts of suspicious movement now too.
