Escaping Smoke: To Crawl Or Not To Crawl

Over the years, I’ve periodically stopped to wonder whether getting and staying low during a fire is really the best thing to do. I had suspicions that although smoke and heat rise, some of the heavier, more toxic fumes may wind up hanging out closer to the floor.

So, I decided to check into the matter and this is what I was able to find out:

Nothing has changed since kindergarten.

Each and every single source I was able to rustle up still recommends the good old low-crawl in the event you need to pass through smoke in order to escape from a burning building.

Even though I pretty much proved myself wrong about the sinking toxic fume thing, I’m glad to hear crawling out of structure fires is still in style. It always did strike me as one of the more entertaining elements of being caught up in that sort of emergency situation. Paling only in comparison to that high-energy activity that burning people everywhere should engage in- Stoppin’, Droppin’, and Rollin’ those worries away. Rolling around on the ground is more than just fun, it’s functional too. It smothers the fire by removing its oxygen supply. Just remember to cover your face while you roll and it’ll be nothing but good times for the whole family.

If the circumstance happens to arise and you or a family member ends up with a burn of the non-emergency variety, get the wound under cold, running water (do not apply ice!)and keep it there for 10-15 minutes or until it stops hurting. Oh, and never put butter or any other oily substance on a burn; this will hold in the heat and prolong the burning process.

Home fires can be devastating. I recommend that you help protect your family with an ADT home security system, including a monitored smoke alarm. A monitored smoke alarm ensures that the fire department responds in an emergency, even if you are asleep or away visiting family. ADT is the leading provider of home security systems in the U.S., with more than 100 years in business.