By Guest Blogger Rena Todd with Independent Insurance Agents
Annually, more than 350,000 families’ lives are changed by house fires. While there are many ways parents can keep their families safe, one of the most effective is teaching their children what to do in the event of a fire. By creating an exit drill for their home, everyone knows the life-saving value of having a fire safety escape plan. And who better to teach them than EDITH?
Our fire education friend EDITH gets her name from the critical acronym telling us to create an Exit Drill In The Home. Established by the Independent Insurance Agents of North Carolina (IIANC) in 1996, Operation EDITH is a fire-safety program that seeks to encourage the parents of young children to talk to their kids about the importance of fire
safety.
Many young children die in fires because they instinctively try to hide from smoke and flames. Fear often causes children to hide in a closet or under a bed in the mistaken belief that they are safe from the fire. That fear also causes many children to escape to safety without telling anyone about the fire.
Through her message of “Get Low and Go,” EDITH teaches children of all ages the key steps in building a plan and how to get out of the house if they smell smoke or hear the sound of a fire alarm.
October is National Fire Prevention Month, so EDITH says take these steps to help protect your family and teach your children about fire safety:
- Install and regularly check smoke detectors on every level of the home.
- Prepare a home exit plan which includes two exits from every room, especially bedrooms, and designate a family meeting spot.
- Practice the home Exit Drill as a family twice each year.
Check out the complete Operation EDITH website at operationedith.com for interactive games and information for kids, as well as resources for parents and teachers.
*Sponsored by Independent Insurance Agents of North Carolina
