https://boards.hellobee.com/ Pregnancy, Baby and Parenting blog, by Hellobee en Sun, 26 Apr 2026 15:05:15 +0000 https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/fire-escape-plan#post-2072085 Mon, 16 Feb 2015 15:44:20 +0000 regberadaisy 2072085@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@kiddosc: daycare is having a firefighter and a search and rescue dog come in tomorrow to talk about fire safety. I'm glad my dd will be around for it.</p> <p>This site was shared<br /> <a href="http://www.safekids.org/fire" rel="nofollow">http://www.safekids.org/fire</a> </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/fire-escape-plan#post-2042330 Tue, 27 Jan 2015 15:35:05 +0000 Mama Bird 2042330@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@lamariniere: same here :( We're on the ninth floor of a 17-story building, and in a bad fire, there's no way out because the stairways will probably fill up with smoke. So the fire plan is to stay put, seal the door with wet towels and stay low to the ground. </p> <p>The building has some incredible fire walls though. A few years ago, there was a fire next door to our apartment (I wasn't home) and there was no damage here at all. There was a huge fire several floors down this summer - I feel incredibly lucky that I'd just put the boys on a train to visit my MIL when it happened. Some idiot asked an unlicensed plumber to connect a new gas stove, and the gas leaked out and caught fire. The smoke was awful, and it was right under my window so I couldn't even open it to get fresh air. Me and a next-door neighbor ended up going to another neighbor who has a balcony on the other side. There were no injuries though, so maybe it wasn't as bad as it seemed... and at least nothing blew up! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/fire-escape-plan#post-2042307 Tue, 27 Jan 2015 15:13:48 +0000 lamariniere 2042307@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@ktdid23: I don't think so, but I should look. And there is only one stairwell. We have smoke detectors in our apartment though. I think fire safety standards aren't the same here as elsewhere. :bummed: That said, my building survived WWII, so at least it's tough. :wink: </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/fire-escape-plan#post-2042294 Tue, 27 Jan 2015 15:03:42 +0000 ktdid23 2042294@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@lamariniere: Does your building have a fire alarm in the hallway? That's how we were alerted that there was a fire in our building - similar to a hotel alarm, I guess. We have smoke alarms and even sprinklers inside our actual unit, but they obviously didn't activate because the fire wasn't actually inside my specific unit. </p> <p>Hopefully your building has fire alarms in the hallways that would alert you to the issue and you would have enough time to get downstairs.... is there only one stairwell? </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/fire-escape-plan#post-2042281 Tue, 27 Jan 2015 14:58:48 +0000 lamariniere 2042281@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I've thought about this but have no plan. We live on the 5th floor of a late 19th century apartment building. I have no idea how we would get out since the only way out is the main stairs (no fire escapes). It's scary to think about. My DH has a coworker who lost his entire house to fire right before the holidays. Since it was a house, they were able to jump out of the window though. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/fire-escape-plan#post-2042263 Tue, 27 Jan 2015 14:50:40 +0000 ktdid23 2042263@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@bluestriped bee: It was horrifying. We were so, so lucky we weren't affected.</p> <p>Updating those tags with the date is a good idea - very helpful for all parties involved. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/fire-escape-plan#post-2042255 Tue, 27 Jan 2015 14:46:44 +0000 ktdid23 2042255@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@kiddosc: Yep, it was 11pm on a Tuesday in Feb. Once we saw the flames, we left the house in what we were wearing; we didn't stop for coats or anything. I had on a tank top and shorts (and my glasses bc I need them to see the iPad &amp; we had been watching a show in bed), my husband had on a short sleeve shirt and fleece pants (no socks, no glasses bc he doesn't need them to see the iPad - but he does need them to see EVERYTHING else), and my 3 year old was wearing fleece pjs with no socks. Thankfully we grabbed the house/car keys, so we were able to get downstairs and get directly into our car, which we backed away from the building and sat in with the engine running, as we watched our building literally burn down.</p> <p>We had never discussed what we'd do in a fire prior to this experience, but instinctively we knew that one of us needed to get the child and the other needed to get the dog. There wasn't a lot of talking while it was happening. My daughter was sleeping in her bed, so we knew exactly where she was and didn't waste any time getting to her. </p> <p>Weeks after the fire, we picked up a tray of cookies for the fire department and went to visit when we knew the squad that saved us would be on duty. They were wonderful - gave us a tour of the station, showed us the trucks, and answered a ton of questions we had about how we could be better prepared in the future. If you have a station close to you, I would suggest going to visit with your child. It was neat for my daughter to see the trucks up close, and we were able to ask specific questions about our condo building. I'm sure your local department would be more than happy to talk with you and show your child the fire trucks! </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/fire-escape-plan#post-2042248 Tue, 27 Jan 2015 14:44:14 +0000 BSB 2042248@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@ktdid23: Wow, scary. Glad your unit wasn't affected.</p> <p>You bring up a good point about the stickers. They should update the stickers and have a space for the date. It might save a little bit of time and confusion if they saw the date listed was a few years old or something. Also, for us, seeing an very old date listed might remind us to keep it updated. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/fire-escape-plan#post-2042237 Tue, 27 Jan 2015 14:37:50 +0000 kiddosc 2042237@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@ktdid23: Yea DH was on his way to work and came upon the fire before the fire dept. had even gotten there. He said the girl there was hysterical and standing in the street in a tank top and yoga pants, it's 20 degrees here. He gave her his coat and was pretty shook up about it all. </p> <p>We've had a general fire escape plan, and have fire ladders for all three bedrooms upstairs, but we've never practiced getting out. And I know that they did a fire unit at daycare, but really how much can/did our two year old absorb? If I'm being honest, we've never even discussed which one of us would be responsible for going to grab E if there was a fire at night, or where exactly we would meet outside. I found online to teach a young child to lay on the floor next to their bed, so I think we'll try teaching him that for now. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/fire-escape-plan#post-2042229 Tue, 27 Jan 2015 14:35:18 +0000 matador84 2042229@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>I've thought about this also. We have storm windows on all our windows so you aren't able to open any of them. Not good in case of a fire. We are in a single level house, but I don't know what the best option would be if we can't get out a window. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/fire-escape-plan#post-2042219 Tue, 27 Jan 2015 14:28:14 +0000 ktdid23 2042219@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Good for you for thinking about this now, before it's too late. </p> <p>11 months ago, our condo building caught fire - someone on the first floor threw a cigarette out on the porch and the wind pushed it up against the side of the house where some dried leaves caught fire... from there, the fire went up the side of the building and completely destroyed 6 units and the entire roof. </p> <p>It was the scariest thing I have EVER seen. We had no idea if our unit was safe. We could see the flames from outside my daughter's window.</p> <p>We were able to go back up to our unit a few hours later and grab a few things to take to a hotel - we were out for a week before we could move back in, per the Fire Marshal. Our unit ended up to be completely undamaged - the fire walls in the building literally saved our lives &amp; our belongings. </p> <p>All this to say - I never in a million years would have thought I'd ever see my own house on fire. We left with nothing except what we were wearing, our child, and our dog. It is smart to have a plan in place in case of emergency. </p> <p>The fire tags that you can put on your windows and doors are a good idea, but ONLY if they are accurate. The fire department (here, anyway) advises against them because if they are inaccurate, they could cause the firemen to be in a house longer than necessary (looking for a dog that doesn't exist) or allow them to leave thinking they have everyone out safely (if someone/animal is missing from the tag). </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/fire-escape-plan#post-2042157 Tue, 27 Jan 2015 13:55:52 +0000 kiddosc 2042157@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>@regberadaisy: I know your older daughter is about E's age, have you taught her about what to do in the case of a fire? A lot of the information I'm finding is for kids 3 or older. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/fire-escape-plan#post-2042144 Tue, 27 Jan 2015 13:50:02 +0000 regberadaisy 2042144@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>Our fire escape ladder is in a closet off the hallway which all our bedrooms are. Unless the fire is in her room we do not want her leaving her bedroom. We would get the ladder and each get a child. Use the ladder if necessary and if not out the front door which is just a few steps down. </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/fire-escape-plan#post-2042135 Tue, 27 Jan 2015 13:45:10 +0000 Mae 2042135@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>My LO is too young to discuss anything with but I've thought about this. Especially because we are on a different floor than our LO! She is on the top floor of the house and I put a fire ladder in her closet in case we wouldn't be able to grab her and get her out of the house. If the hall/stairs between our room and hers was clear our plan would be to run to her together and one of us get her and the other get the ladder and go back to our room to go out that window (it is on a lower floor so would be easier to climb out with her). But if we needed to we could go out her bedroom window. We also have fire tags on our front and back doors that tell fireman how many pets we have in the house (although I'm just now realizing I should update it to say there is a baby too!) </p> https://boards.hellobee.com/topic/fire-escape-plan#post-2042115 Tue, 27 Jan 2015 13:36:20 +0000 kiddosc 2042115@https://boards.hellobee.com/ <p>A house burned down in our neighborhood yesterday, which got us really thinking that we didn't have a specific fire escape plan. We were talking about it last night and weren't sure what an appropriate plan was to teach our two year old. I thought he should have a designated place to stand and wait until someone got him, but DH wanted to teach him to go for an exit. I don't think he's old enough to be able to make decisions about where to go in an emergency like that though. I think we'll be doing some fire drills in the house in the next few weeks. </p> <p>Have you discussed a fire escape plan with your younger kids? What did you teach them? </p>