To honor October as National Fire Prevention Month the safety specialists at EMI have some tips on best practices in preventing fires in the workplace and at home.

Workplace Safety

Does your company have a fire prevention plan? Consider reviewing your company’s Emergency Action Plan. OSHA requires most companies to have a Fire Prevention Plan. The basic requirements can be found in 29 CFR 1910.39 of the OSHA Regulations. The following outline can be used as a fire prevention training session and to verify your organization is in compliance with OSHA Regulations:

  • List all major fire hazards
  • Proper handling and storage of hazardous materials
  • Identify and control potential ignition sources
  • Control accumulations of flammable materials (i.e., oily rags, piles of waste paper, and cardboard)
  • Identify people responsible for maintaining fire prevention equipment
  • Inspect fire extinguishers monthly and annually

Consider conducting a fire drill to verify all employees are aware of your procedures if there is a fire. Now is a good time to do this before winter is upon us and it is cold outside.

Home Safety

Don’t forget the home front. We will be changing our clocks soon—this is a great time to change the batteries in your smoke and Carbon Monoxide detectors. Does your home have fire extinguishers? Consider purchasing some if you don’t and inspect the ones you already have in your home.

Another good practice is to regularly discuss as a family the plan so everyone knows what to do in the event a fire happens in your home and identify a safe place for everyone to meet. Place emergency numbers on the refrigerator.

Sparky.org is an excellent website for families with children. The site has a variety of activities to assist parents in explaining the importance of fire prevention and what to do in case of a fire. There are tons of activities, stories, and games for hours of entertainment and education for all ages!


Written by Millie Gibson, OHST/H&S Instructor