Staff writer
A house fire ignited Sunday causing some damage to 413 Doyle St. in Florence.
The residents were likely outside the house when the fire started, according to Florence Fire Chief Mark Slater.
“One happened to go back inside to check on food in the oven,” Slater said. “Smoke came rolling out when they opened the back door.”
Florence, Marion, and Peabody firefighters responded to the call at approximately 7:40 p.m. as part of the automatic aid system between county fire departments.
“Very minimal damage occurred,” Slater said. “The range hood on the stove was the most damaged, which is where we believe it started.”
Slater said that the homeowner had put out the fire before firefighters arrived. A parcel search indicates that Florence resident Daniel J. Depler was the homeowner.
“They are very fortunate,” Slater said. “I do not recommend anyone try to put out fires on their own,” Slater said. “Things can change quickly in a fire. You can injure yourself or worse.”
Safe Kids Kansas reports that 8 out of 10 fire-related deaths take place in the home.
National Fire Prevention week is this week. Home Fire Drill Day is Saturday. Safe Kids Kansas urges parents to make a plan and practice it with children.
Hillsboro Fire Chief Ben Steketee had some tips for families.
“The main thing is to sit down and make a fire escape plan,” Steketee said. “You could just draw one up and post it, but it’s better if you talk about it and practice it. That way everyone knows what to do.”
Making sure each bedroom has at least two exits is important because paths can become blocked during a fire.
A designated meeting place should be part of the escape plan.
“It needs to be outside in front of the house, far enough away to be safe from a fire and out of the way of traffic,” Steketee said. “It’s also a way to check to see if everyone made it out OK. If someone is not there then it can be assumed they might still be inside.”
Using a timer to make sure everyone can get to the designated safe sport in two minutes or less also is important when practicing an escape plan.
Other tips include making sure smoke detectors are installed on every level of the home, parents checking smoke alarms with kids to make sure children know what the alarm sounds like, and regularly checking batteries.
Children under the 6 years old should have an adult assigned to help them in the escape.
Parents should also make sure kids know to crawl on the floor if there is smoke, and check door handles to tell if it is hot or not. If it is hot, Steketee said, people should use an alternate exit path if possible.