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'70% of fire deaths cause due to suffocation'

Dubai - People always try to escape from the fire when an accident happens and do not realise the seriousness of inhaling smoke

More than 70 per cent of deaths from fire accidents were caused by suffocation, according to a senior official with the Dubai Civil Defence.
According to Major-General Rashid Thani Al Moroboshi, Director-General of Dubai Civil Defence, said smoke is the silent killer in fire accidents. "People always try to escape from the fire when an accident happens and do not realise the seriousness of inhaling smoke," he said, adding that the danger increases while sleeping as the victim does not feel the smoke till choking becomes intense.
The Dubai Civil Defence will launch a home safety programme to spread awareness among residents about preventive and safety behaviours. The programme would teach residents about the risk of smoke during fire accidents and preventive measures to be taken.
Installation of smoke sensors is among the major preventive measures, Major-General Al Moroboshi said, adding that sensors should be installed in all the rooms and be linked to a wireless alarm system. If smoke arises anywhere inside the house the alarm will alert residents and they could get out of the danger zone before the smoke becomes heavy. He warned that the smoke could contain toxic gases and particles which may turn fatal for human beings.
In most of the cases, fire breaks out in the ground floor of the house and spreads to the upper floors. With no ventilation, smoke easily sweep to the second floor, causing suffocation to those who stay there. It could be more disastrous if the people on the upper floors are asleep, said Maj.-Gen. Al Moroboshi. During such incidents, residents should open the windows to let the smoke go out into the air. After opening the windows, residents should go to another room, far away from the smoke and then close the door behind them. They should also close any holes which would allow smoke to seep into the room. If there is an outside window that opens to the direction opposite the source of fire, that should be kept open to let more oxygen come in, which would help the person survive till the rescue teams reach the spot, he said.
"We advise people if they find themselves forced to escape through smoke, they should crawl on their hands and knees. It's because the smoke usually goes up, leaving a space of clean air at a height of 60cm from the ground level. So crawling would help keep the head in this safe area, away from the toxic content of the smoke.
Reasons for home fire
The Dubai Civil Defence chief said that the main reason of home fires, according to studies, is lack of preventive awareness which leads to carelessness.
Poor safety infrastructure, especially in older buildings, like exhausted electrical network, damaged electric appliances, wrecked gas pipeline systems also cause house fires, in addition to unlicensed constructional modifications and lack of control of ignition sources.
Developing a preventive behaviour is the basic to ensure fire safety, which could be possible only through raising public awareness, said Maj.-Gen. Al Moroboshi.
The home safety campaign will concentrate on spreading awareness on ways of fire prevention and how to behave properly at the time of the fire. It will also help people identify dangerous aspects of the infrastructure of the house.
How to escape suffocation in case of home fire
If the fire is on the ground floor and you are on the upper floors:
Open the windows to let the smoke go out
Move to another room away from the smoke and close the door behind you
Close any holes that may allow smoke to seep through
Open the outside window to let more oxygen come in till the rescue teams arrive
If you have to escape through smoke:
Crawl on your knees and hands, placing the head as low as possible.
amira@khaleejtimes.com