Home and Apartment Safety

Plan your escape

1. Develop a home fire escape plan
2. Practise your escape plan with everyone in your home
3. Make sure everyone knows two ways out of each room, if possible.
4. Help those who need it
5. Get low and go under the smoke to the nearest safe exit
6. Choose a meeting place outside, a safe distance from your home
7. Get out, stay out

Make sure that everyone knows the sound of the smoke alarm and what to do if a fire occurs. Regularly practice your home escape plan.

Learn more about the seven steps to plan your escape.

Get out, stay out

Fire and smoke spread so quickly, the fire department may not arrive in time to save you in a fire.

• When the smoke alarms sound, get out immediately and call 9-1-1 from outside
• Never re-enter a burning building
• Develop a home fire escape plan today, it could save your life tonight!

Contact our fire prevention division at 905-338-4404 for more information on planning your escape.

Home safety

Be prepared for a fire and develop a fire escape plan:

• Draw a floor plan of your home
• Include all possible emergency exits
• Include any important features that could help with your escape
• Mark two escape routes from each room
• Remember — some people may need help to escape
• Choose a place outside where everyone will meet
• Call 911 from a neighbour's home
• Make sure everyone is familiar with the home escape plan
• Practice your fire escape plan.

Apartment safety

• Get a copy of the fire emergency procedures from your building management and read them carefully
• Become familiar with the fire safety features provided in your building, including exits and stairwells
• When you hear an alarm, exit the building as quickly as possible. If you cannot safely reach an exit, take refuge in an apartment suite as quickly as possible. Take actions to protect yourself from smoke. Call 911 and provide details of your situation and location.
• If the suite fills with smoke, move to the balcony (if you have one) and close the doors
• If you do not have a balcony, go to the most smoke-free room, close the door and seal it with tape and towels.
• Open the window for fresh air but be prepared to close it again if this makes conditions worse.
• Never break the window to get fresh air or you will not be able to seal it off if conditions change.

To protect yourself from smoke when unable to exit a building during a fire:

• Use duct tape and wet towels to seal around the door, vents, air ducts and other areas that may allow smoke to enter the room
• If smoke is worse in one room (e.g. bathroom), close the door and seal off the room with tape and wet towels
• Keep low to the floor where the air is cleaner
• Keep a cell phone or cordless phone with you to call 911 and provide details of your situation and location

Return to the Fire Safety and Guidelines page.

Fire safety tips

• Hear the beep where you sleep! Every bedroom needs a working smoke alarm!
• Install at least one carbon monoxide detector
• Test smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors regularly
• Clean barbecues before use
• Have flash light and extra batteries on hand
• Check heating appliances and chimney before use
• Check with local fire department on open air burning by-laws
• If you smoke, do so outside and keep a can of water nearby to discard cigarette butts