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Happy Valentine’s Day

And kudos to Cal Fire Riverside for an inspirational Valentine message!

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Protect Yourself Against Deadly Hotel and Motel Stays

Every year there are almost 4,000 hotel and motel fires reported to U.S. fire departments, resulting in $76 million in property loss, according to the U.S. Fire Administration.  Almost 50 percent of these fires are started by cooking. Since I started in the fire prevention business years ago, many positive changes have been made to make hotel and motel kitchens safer, but fires still do happen.

Here are five tips travelers can take to protect themselves:

  • Make sure that you confirm that the hotel or motel is equipped with automatic sprinklers and fire alarms before you travel – this is especially important for trips outside the country as the strict U.S. standards may not apply.
  • Pack a small flashlight.
  • Review the evacuation map posted on the floor where you are staying.
  • If there is a fire, always use a stairwell and not an elevator.
  • If there is a fire, feel the door of your room.  If it is hot, keep it closed and seal it with wet towels.  Call 911 and let the operator know which room in the hotel you are staying, and signal from your window. Break it if you have to.

Hotels and motels can protect travelers by installing our Guardian Solution, a system designed to detect and extinguish cooking fires and at the same time prevent re-ignition. Once it detects heat at a pre-determined temperature, a signal is sent to release the extinguishing agent to suppress the fire and to shut off the gas or electric supply to the stove in order to prevent reigniting (see video).  It should be installed in any new construction and can be retrofitted as well.  It is imperative to minimize damage and injury to travelers and employees alike.

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Paul Rouse is the administrative officer with Guardian Safety Solutions International, Inc. and fire suppression educator and expert In Dallas, TX. Visit www.GuardianSSI.com, on Fabebook and follow on Twitter @GuardianSSI.

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Independence MO Fire Department Offers Cooking Safety Tips

Cooking fires are the leading cause of residential fires and associated injuries across the nation.  The NFPA reported that during the years 2003 – 2006, U.S. fire departments responded to an average of 150,200 cooking fires per year.  These fires cause annual average of 4,660 civilian injuries, 500 civilian deaths and $756 million in direct property Damage.  Unattended cooking was the leading contributing factor.  During the years 2007 – 2009, the Independence Fire Department responded to 86 residential cooking fires.

To help prevent cooking fires please follow these simple and effective tips:

  • Stay in the kitchen.  Unattended cooking is the primary cause of kitchen fire.
  • Wear clothes that fit.  Loose fitting clothing can catch fire.
  • Keep the stove and oven clean.  Grease and food build up can catch fire.
  • Have a 3 foot “no-go-zone” for children.  When they are older, teach fire safety.
  • Turn handle inward.  This will prevent spills and injuries.

In the event of a kitchen / cooking fire you should know what to do:

  • When in doubt, get out.  If you are unsure of your abilities, remove yourself from the home and call 911 from a safe phone.
  • Purchase a kitchen rated fire extinguisher.
  • For small fires, cover the item with a lid and turn off the heat source.
  • For oven fires, keep the door closed and turn off the heat source.
  • For microwave fires, keep the door closed and unplug it if possible.

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Building Safety Month Brings Awareness to Code Enforcement and Safety

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Building Safety Month Brings Awareness to Code Enforcement and Safety

GuardianSSI Asks Code Officials to Increase Fire Prevention in Commercial Occupancies

Dallas – In the midst of Building Safety Month, launched by the International Code Council (ICC) and its 57,000 members worldwide, Guardian Safety Solutions International, Inc. (GSSI) is raising awareness in the industry by observing the mission of ICC’s public awareness campaign. GSSI is the leader in the development and manufacturing of superior fire suppression equipment for commercial occupancies where residential appliances are in use. The ICC, along with a diverse partnership of professionals from the building construction, design and safety community launched Building Safety Month 35 years ago.

“Cooking fires are the number one cause of injury and death associated with fires,” said Paul Rouse, GSSI’s administrative officer. He added, “GuardianSSI champions the adoption of modern building codes, implementing a strong and efficient system of code enforcement and a professional workforce that works with code officials to increase fire prevention and safety.” Guardian products are designed to detect and extinguish fires and prevent re-ignition in senior housing facilities, college campuses, churches, fire stations, hospitals and other commercial occupancies. “The Guardian fire suppression systems are increasingly accepted nationwide as code officials are educated to the hazard protection advantages the GSSI systems provide,” Rouse said. “We offer ongoing training to code officials when they sign up on our website,” Rouse added.

GuardianSSI recently launched the Guardian Model G600B to include electronic operation with electric and gas ranges (watch the video demo). It works with any standard over-the-stove microwave/range hood. Each system is UL/ULC listed with a gas or electric fuel shutoff. The G600B has an updated, integrated self-diagnostic CPU board with a monitored pressure gauge. It features a pull-pin holder for arming the system, an alarm connection for a trouble and activation signal, quick and easy plug connectors and an RF transmitter and receiver for wireless shutoff connections. Benefits of Guardian systems include automatic operation, continuous 24-hour protection, concealed installation, easy clean-up and proven reliability. For end users, Guardian Fire Suppression Systems offer substantial savings over a traditional commercial system.

Guardian Fire Suppression Systems have been used and supported in more than 400,000 installations worldwide and have been UL listed since 1985.  For more information, contact GSSI at 800-786-2178 or visit www.guardianssi.com. “Like” Guardian on Facebook at GuardianSSI and follow on Twitter @GuardianSSI.

Media Contact:

Susan Tellem, Tellem Grody PR, 310.313.3444 x1, Susan@tellemgrodypr.com

Comments (0) Boats, Churches, Colleges, Commercial occupancies, Fire marshals, fire stations, hospitals, Hotels and Motels, Multi-Family, Press Releases, RVs, Schools, Senior Living

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Kitchen Safety Tips from the Dinner Diva

the-dinner-divaWe stumbled on a great bunch of kitchen safety tips Leanne Ely who goes by the moniker the Dinner Diva.  Take these to heart and read more at SavingDinner.com. Of course, to be extra safe, install the Guardian III G300B which puts out range top fires in seconds.

Be aware of flammables. Stop putting those oven mitts and kitchen towels anywhere near the stove top. You might think you are safe because you don’t leave flammables next to your element, but remember what happened to my friend, when a spark caused a tea towel to catch fire . . . a tea towel that was hanging off the oven door (where many of us often place these things!). Curtains, appliance cords and anything else that can melt or catch fire should have a safe amount of distance between it and the stove.

Dress appropriately. Loose fitting clothing can catch fire. When you’re cooking—especially over propane burners—,keep baggy shirts tucked in or tied back with a well-fitting apron. Avoid wearing long, flowing sleeves when you’re at the stove, too.

Don’t leave the kitchen. If you have something cooking in the kitchen, stay in the room. If you absolutely have to step out of the kitchen while you’re cooking, take the pots and pans off the heat or turn off the boiler. Unattended pots and pans is the most common cause of kitchen fires.

Know your smoke points. Become familiar with the smoking points of the fats and oils you use for cooking. Oils with low smoke points brought to high temperatures can catch fire.

Dispose of grease responsibly. That means not throwing hot grease in the garbage can—it can cause something in the trash can to ignite. Wait until the grease cools and then dispose of it.

Clean grease spills. If you spill grease during cooking and it falls into the drip pan under your stove’s cooking element, turn off the heat and wait for the burner to cool down; then, clean up the spill. Otherwise, the next time you go to cook something, you’ll probably forget about the grease being there and it could easily ignite.

Use appropriate cooking utensils. If you’re cooking something in a deep layer of oil, be sure to use long-handled tongs to allow you to safely put food in and take food out without causing grease to splash out over the sides. In fact, deep fat cooking should only be done in a deep fryer.

Watch for smoke. When your cooking oil starts smoking, that means it’s close to catching fire and you need to carefully remove the pan from the heat source.

In case the worst case scenario happens, be sure to have a fire extinguisher in the kitchen where it’s in easy reach. Never, ever put water on a grease fire because it can make the fire spread.

 

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