Burn Injury Safety Measures and Possible Hazards

Avoid Burn Injuries

• Mindfully position objects to prevent them from being dragged down or pushed over.
• When cooking on a stovetop, use the back burners and turn the handles of pots and pans in to avoid accidentally knocking them over or off the stove.
• Make sure oven mitts, hot pads, and potholders are dry. Hot pots, pans, and trays can heat the moisture in a wet potholder or hot pad, resulting in a burn injury.
• Avoid loose, long sleeved shirts when cooking. Always wear short sleeves, otherwise long-sleeves with close-fitting cuffs should be worn. If long sleeves are loose, be sure to tightly roll-up the sleeves before cooking.
• Never allow small children within three feet of the stove.
• Keep the water heater no hotter than 120° Fahrenheit.
• Never place your child in the tub or let yourself hop in the shower without first checking the water temperature.

Burn & Scald First Aid

• Immediately place burned skin in cool water for three to five minutes.
• Wrap burn with a sanitary, dry fabric. Do not use any topical creams, ointments, or other home remedies.
• Take off all articles of clothing, jewelry, and metal around the burn injury. For infants and toddlers, change their diaper. Underlying burns can be hidden by these items while jewelry and metal can hold retain heat making it possible to make the burn injury worse.

Fire Protection

• Install smoke alarms in your home and regularly confirm the alarms sound. Be sure to swap out the batteries every six months.
• Educate yourself on proper scenarios for a fire extinguisher. A minimum of three should be kept, in the kitchen, close to the washer and dryer, and next to the furnace.
• Make a fire escape plan and conduct fire drills. Have a safe outdoor location for every family members to meet in the event of a fire.
• Hire a certified electrician to assess the wiring in your home at minimum once every ten years.
• Hire a professional chimneysweep to inspect and clean your chimney and fireplace annually.

Fire Prevention

• If you have a young child, always ensure the seat-belt straps and buckles of the car and booster seats aren’t too hot. The straps and buckles of the seat-belt have the ability to inflict second-degree burns on young children. If unable to park in the shade, be sure to shield the car seat with a towel or spare article of clothing.
• Never allow electrical outlets to be uncovered, especially those near the floor within a child’s or pet’s reach. Outlet covers will additionally assist avoiding electrical burns.
• Toss out all electrical cords that are frayed or damaged. Using damaged and frayed electrical cords are a large cause of electrical burns and fires.
• Wear gloves, protective clothing, and take other safety measures when working with chemicals. Always store chemicals and gasoline where children can’t access them.
• Keep objects a minimum of three feet away from all sides of space heaters. Inform children to keep a distance from them. Never leave a space heater unattended.
• Keep matches and lighters out of reach of children, preferably in a locked cabinet.
• Never allow candles to burn while you aren’t present in a room. Always extinguish candles when you leave the room. Think about buying flameless candles.
• Do not smoke in the house and never smoke in bed. The main reason for house fire fatalities are fires produced by cigarettes, pipes, and cigars.
• Never let children play around the stove and do not let young children assist you while cooking.
• In case of a stovetop fire, use a lid to extinguish the flames. Cooking fires contribute greatly to apartment and house fires.
• Don’t use a microwave oven to warm baby bottles as the liquid heats haphazardly. The unevenly heated bottle may scald a baby’s mouth.
• Always unplug hot clothing and curling irons from an outlet and place them outside of children’s reach.

Plan For a Fire

• Create a family escape plan and stick to it
• Decide a safe, outdoor location to meet in the event of a fire
• In the event of a fire, navigate to the safe location as quickly and safely as possible.

Escaping a Fire

• Heat and smoke rise, keep low to the floor to prevent burn injury and smoke inhalation. Most house fire fatalities occur from toxic gas inhalation opposed to burn injuries.
• Figure out where the fire is. Shut doors can hide the fire. Make sure the door isn’t hot by using the back of your hand to examine the temperature. A hot door means the fire is close. Leave the door shut and find another exit path.
• A cool door can be opened with caution. Gradually open the door to prevent burn injury by a rush of flames. If you don’t see flames in the room on the other side of the door, continue your exit with caution.
• Be sure to shut doors behind you to stall the spread of the fire along your exit path.
• In the event you or your clothes start on fire, remember to “stop, drop, and roll” on the floor.