Fire safety in your home: essential steps to protect yourself and your loved ones

If you hear a fire alarm or suspect fire outside your flat, don’t automatically rush out. Opening your door to a smoke-filled corridor can be deadly.

What to do:

• Touch your door with the back of your hand. If it feels warm or hot, do not open it. Fire is likely on the other side.
• If the door is cool, open it slowly whilst staying low. Check for smoke or fire in the hallway.
• If the hallway appears safe, proceed to your nearest stairwell, taking your keys with you.
• Close your flat door behind you as you leave—this can help contain the fire and slow its spread.

Sometimes the safest option is to stay in your flat and wait for rescue, particularly in high-rise buildings where smoke has filled stairwells.

What to do:

• Call 999 immediately. Tell the dispatcher your exact location—building name, flat number and floor. Explain that you cannot evacuate.
• Close all doors between you and the fire. This creates barriers that slow smoke and heat.
• Seal gaps around doors and air vents with wet towels, bedding, duct tape or any material you have. Even a small gap can let in dangerous amounts of smoke.
• Stay low where the air is clearer. Smoke and toxic gases rise.
• Go to a window. Open it slightly at both top and bottom for fresh air if possible, but be prepared to close it if smoke starts entering from outside.
• Signal for help at the window using a torch, mobile phone light or a bright cloth. Make yourself visible to firefighters.
• If your flat has a balcony, go there. This puts an additional barrier between you and the fire.
• Cover your nose and mouth with a damp cloth to help filter smoke.
• Do not break windows unless absolutely necessary, as you may need to close them if the wind direction changes and smoke begins entering from outside.

If you’re evacuating through smoke, your priority is to protect your airways whilst moving as quickly as possible to safety.

What to do:

• Stay as low as you can—crawl if necessary. Clearer air is near the floor.
• Move quickly but carefully. Don’t run blindly, especially on stairs where you could fall.
• Keep one hand on the wall to help you navigate in poor visibility.
• If you're evacuating with others, move in single file—one behind the other. This “snake” formation allows you to move faster and lets others pass more easily.
• Don't stop on stairs. Keep moving until you're completely out of the building.
• In high-rise evacuations, expect to stop and rest on landings if needed, but keep these pauses brief. Fatigue is real during long descents, but lingering increases danger.

This cannot be emphasised enough: lifts are deadly during fires.

Why:

• Lifts can malfunction due to fire damage or power loss, trapping you between floors.
• Lift shafts can fill with smoke, exposing you to toxic gases.
• Lifts may open directly onto the floor where the fire is burning.
• Modern lifts often automatically respond to fire alarm systems by returning to the ground floor and staying there—which could trap you inside.
• Always use stairs. If someone in your group cannot use stairs due to mobility issues, you may need to implement the “stay put” strategy and wait for firefighter assistance.

After you've evacuated, the danger isn’t over. Many fire deaths occur when people re-enter burning buildings.

What to do:

• Move well away from the building. Burning debris can fall from above, especially in fires involving scaffolding or external materials.
• Go to your pre-planned meeting point and account for everyone.
• Call 999 if you haven't already. Even if others have called, provide any additional information about people who might still be trapped.
• Do not re-enter the building for any reason. Not for possessions, pets or people. Inform firefighters of anyone unaccounted for and let them perform rescues.
• Stay where firefighters can find you. They may need additional information about the building layout or occupants.

Taking simple precautions dramatically reduces your risk.

In the kitchen:

• Never leave cooking unattended.
• Keep flammable items—tea towels, wooden utensils, packaging—away from the hob.
• Turn pot handles inward so they can't be knocked over.
• Clean your hob, oven and extractor fan regularly to prevent grease buildup.
• Keep a fire blanket or fire extinguisher in the kitchen and know how to use it.
• Water on an oil fire causes explosive splattering. Electrical fires need the power cut first. Gas fires require shutting off the source. Kitchen fires need lids or fire blankets, not water. Knowing which method works for which fire—grease, electrical, gas, chemical is important. 

Electrical safety:

• Don't overload power sockets. Use one plug per socket when possible.
• Check electrical cords regularly. Replace any that are frayed, damaged or warm to the touch.
• Unplug appliances when not in use, especially high-wattage items like irons and hair straighteners.
• Never run electrical cords under carpets or rugs where damage may go unnoticed.
• Have a qualified electrician inspect older flats' wiring, particularly in buildings constructed before modern electrical codes.

Smoking:

• If you must smoke, never smoke in bed or when drowsy.
• Use deep, stable ashtrays that won't tip.
• Completely extinguish every cigarette before disposal.
• Never empty ashtrays into waste bins without ensuring all contents are cold.
• Candles and open flames:
  • Place candles on stable, heat-resistant surfaces away from curtains, papers and other flammables.
  • Never leave burning candles unattended.
  • Extinguish all candles before sleeping or leaving home.
  • Keep matches and lighters where children cannot reach them.

Subdivided flats:

• Be especially vigilant if you live in a subdivided unit. Alterations may have compromised fire safety features.
• Ensure you have clear access to exits.
• Check that subdivisions haven't blocked fire exits.

Buildings under renovation:

• Know alternative escape routes in case scaffolding blocks usual exits.
• Report any concerns about renovation work blocking fire exits or windows.

Older buildings:

• If you live in an older building, it may not meet current fire safety standards. Be proactive about installing smoke alarms and creating escape plans.
• Participate in building improvement schemes when offered.
• Don’t prop open fire doors in stairwells—these are designed to contain smoke and fire.

   

  Emergency number: 999

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