Practice household fire safety at home, or you may regret it later By Peter A. Garcia Staff Writer

Last week another home burned down in Comal County; luckily no one was hurt, just as no one was hurt in a fire that destroyed a house in Deer River subdivision. Fire safety is a concern that all home owners and renters should be aware of. The last two home fires probably could have been averted with proper attention to detail. Home and apartment occupants must take the time to ensure that they have secured flammables in proper storage areas and in proper storage containers. Teach family members where fire extinguishers are stored and how to use them in putting out a fire. Additionally, heads of households must establish escape routes through several different points in the house or apartment. Teach these routes to family members and practice them. These few steps can make the difference in surviving a home fire, or losing loved ones to a fire. A few months back, Wayne Wright donated early warning smoke alarms to our local fire department to be handed out to families who do not have smoke alarms in their homes. Wright did this as part of his “Smoke alarms in every home” campaign. As Wayne Wright said, “Every child, in every home, deserves the protection that a smoke alarm provides. It is unbelievable to think that there are families in our community living in homes without this simple lifesaving device, so we have decided to make smoke alarms available free of charge to any San Antonio area families without them.” Wright started this campaign because he lost a close friend and the friend’s family in a home fire – their smoke detector was later determined to be faulty. Contact your local fire department for information on Wayne Wrights’ free smoke detectors if your home does not have a working smoke detector.

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