September is Campus Fire Safety Month, and it's a good time to review best practices and put them into practice. Whether you're a fire safety professional or a safety educator responsible for campus safety, a student or a parent, the NFPA and its partners provide a wealth of resources to help you get started. Campus Fire Safety for Students The NFPA and the Campus Fire Safety Center are working together to help raise awareness of fire hazards among college-age students living in college housing on and off campus. The campaign encourages students to learn about the risks, such as cooking without supervision, using candles and disabling smoke detectors in rooms, as well as preventive measures that could save their lives.
See it before you sign it The Consumer Product Safety Commission, the NFPA, the USFA and Campus Firewatch are collaborating on a national campaign called See It Before You Sign It to encourage parents to see the apartment or house off campus where their children will live before signing the lease. Help remind parents that safe off-campus housing includes working smoke detectors and two exits. The Consumer Product Safety Commission has also created an infographic for this campaign for use on its website, blogs and social networks. Just download the graphic and place it wherever you want to use it.
Link to the Campus Firewatch website. Look for fully sprayed housing when choosing a dorm room or off-campus housing. Read all of the NFPA's campus fire safety tips. Use this simple fire safety checklist once you move into your campus home.
It's a fact that there isn't much space in your bedroom or apartment, but that doesn't mean you should store your bikes, suitcases, etc. in the corridors and on the stairs, and especially NOT in front of the exit doors. You need these free, uncluttered areas to be able to escape quickly in the event of a fire. If there are things that block your exits, you could easily get trapped inside the burning building.
Candles are a major cause of fires in homes on and off campus and, because of this, most colleges and universities don't allow them in dorms. If you want to use candles off campus, try flameless candles. They don't cost much, are scented and come in a million shapes and colors. Buy them online or at your nearest home store or pharmacy.
When you're at home in your off-campus apartment, take advantage of the door locks. It's not too complicated to close and unlock the door as needed. Keeping the door closed is the first line of defense in case someone unpleasant wants to enter your space. If you're not confident in the safety of your lock, talk to your landlord about changing it.
Try these safety tips for your student housing and learn more about home safety at Safety %26 Security at the University of Southern Utah. Learning how to make your off-campus student housing safer at first may seem overwhelming, but there are small, easy and quick ways to make your accommodation a safer place for everyone to live in.