Fire in the house

Fire in the apartment or in the summer cottage can break out both because of you and for reasons beyond your control (because of a lightning stroke, for example). Casual handing of sources of the open flame, use of defective electric devices or misuse of the electric network can cause the fire.

How to prevent fire?

Do not dry the laundry over the gas-stove; do not use the gas-stove to warm up flammable liquids (varnish and paint). Do not leave unattended the TV set on.  Purchase a fire extinguisher and keep it at hand.

What to do if it happens

Don’t panic, but act quickly. If you see that the fire spreads, immediately leave the apartment. Disconnect gas feed and help children and old people out of the danger zone. Leaving the apartment, come down the stairs. Do not use the lift: in the event that the fire spreads all over the building, the lift can stop and turn into a trap. If the center of ignition is small, call the fire brigade (101) and then start to extinguish the fire yourself. Use a fire extinguisher, pour water over the flame or cover it with a carpet or a blanket. Extinguish burning electric after disconnecting them.

Do not open windows when the fire burns: the flame will blaze up because of inflow of oxygen.

If you failed to extinguish the fire, and you have difficulty leaving the building, hang out “a sign on a trouble”, a white bed-sheet in a window and consider ways to rescue. Firemen, certainly, will try to help you, but it happens that one minute solves all. If you live on the ground floor, you can escape through a window. Throw downwards mattresses, pillows, blankets; reduce the height of a leap and descend using cords, curtains or bed-sheets attached to central heating radiators.