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Things to do in a fire

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pwhodges:
Kitchen fire, so I guess a genuine accident?  Fat involved? - common in kitchens, and never a good thing in these circumstances...

I wish you a good recovery.

lepetitfromage:
:-( I'm so sorry, Zoe. I'm glad you're well enough to update us (with a sense of humor, even!) and wish you a speedy recovery. *hug*

Mlle Germain:
I also hope you get well quickly!
That must have been a terrifying experience. I am impressed by your strength to post about it here so quickly in such a level-headed way (at least that's how it looks to me).

Jimor:
Gah, sorry this happened to you, Zoe. Very glad you are basically OK, and I hope the recovery is a quick as possible.

A couple of years ago, my adult nephew, who's staying with me and my mother, woke me up saying he smelt smoke downstairs. When I got down there, a small amount of smoke was coming from the home entertainment shelves. I pulled out the drawers that hid the access to the electrical outlet and found sparks and a small open flame pouring out of it. I grabbed the extinguisher, put it out, but since power was still hot, it flared up again. Got outside to the breaker box, but the painters who painted the townhouse complex a few months earlier had essentially sealed it, so I wasn't able to open it by hand. Ran inside, put out the flame again, outside again, found something to pry open the breaker box, shut everything down, went inside, and finally got it out for good. Called the fire department anyway so they could check it all out.

I was very aware of the scale of the problem, and the exit was 10 feet away unobstructed, so this was something I could handle. BUT, if my nephew hadn't been home, by the time the smoke alarm sounded, it definitely would have been too late for anything but escape considering all the books, CDs, DVDs and electronics in the shelves acting as fuel.

The cause was an old "surge protector" adapter on the outlet that extended it to 6 plugs. What most people don't realize is that most passive surge protectors have an expiration date. If they are too old, then a surge is more likely to cause it to combust. The electric utility, working outside, had accidentally cut the neutral lead, which caused the power to fluctuate between 50V and 180V instead of the steady 120V.

Let me repeat, OLD PASSIVE SURGE PROTECTORS ARE POTENTIALLY DANGEROUS.

Afterward, when I noticed the computer upstairs didn't turn on, when I looked at the power strip under the desk, I saw that it too had blown out the bottom and scorched a 1 inch-wide burn in the carpet. The firefighters who checked things out didn't like the surge protectors that plugged directly into the wall outlet, but instead recommended using the power strip kind that have a clear indicator (usually a light) of when it's no longer good, and to make sure you pay attention to that.

This episode from NOVA on PBS has always left a very strong impression on me with regards to fire and what it takes to escape safely.
//www.youtube.com/watch?v=RlyLF0OnJ7wThere's a different episode that I can't find right now that talks about the evolution of fire fighting, and specifically how it was only fairly recently that the concept of how vitally important the hot gasses that collect on the ceiling are to the quick spread and danger of even "small" fires.

I had a chance to talk about some of the experiences of my uncle who was a firefighter in the 60s and early 70s before many of the new safety standards in building and household products came on line, and where fires were a nearly weekly event in the small town he worked in. It's a testament to how much things have improved that when an empty house down the street from us caught fire 3 years ago, 12 engines and 4 news vans pulled up to cover it; it's that newsworthy even in a city of 1.2 million.

Be safe, everybody.

Welu:
Hugs and love for you, Zoe.

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