Contact: Ed Comeau, Publisher
Campus Firewatch
www.campus-firewatch.com

413-323-6002 (tel)
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ecomeau@campus-firewatch.com

National Campus Fire Safety Month™ reminds parents and students about the importance of fire safety

Most fatal academic year for fire deaths demonstrates need for increased awareness

BELCHERTOWN, MASS., Sept. 12, 2007 — Campus fire safety has become an important issue across the nation and Campus Fire Safety Month is a unique opportunity to impress upon students and parents the importance of knowing how to select fire-safe housing and how to protect against fire injury or death.

Now in its third year, at least 26 governors have signed proclamations designating September as Campus Fire Safety Month in their states, a resolution has been passed by the U.S. Senate and one is pending in the U.S. House of Representatives. Schools across the country will be holding events to educate and inform students about what they can do to help ensure they are not the victim of a preventable fire.

The 2006-2007 academic year is the most fatal on record with 20 campus-related fire deaths occurring across the country, according to information compiled by Campus Firewatch. Since January 2000 at least 113 people have been killed in campus-related fires with more than 80 percent of the fatal fires in off-campus occupancies, where the majority of the students live.

“It is vitally important that parents play a role in helping decide where their children live on and off campus,” said Kimberly Wencl, who lost her daughter, Liz, in an off-campus fire at the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis. "Your kids think they are invincible at this age, but they aren't. As parents we need to do all we can to keep our children safe by talking with them.”

There is a list of questions that students and parents can ask to find out how much focus a school may have on fire safety. These include:

• How many fires have occurred on campus in the past year? How about fires in off-campus student housing?
• Are residence halls, Greek Housing and off-campus housing equipped with an automatic fire sprinkler system?If not, why not? Sprinklers provide that vital first line of defense when it comes to controlling a fire. Ask for your student to be put in sprinklered housing.
• Does every student’s room have a smoke alarm?Does it send a signal to campus security or the fire department? Fire alarm systems will give everyone the warning that there is a fire and it is time to get out.
• How many false alarms have occurred in the residence halls? False alarms cause students to stop paying attention to the alarms, which can be a fatal decision. False alarms ARE avoidable.
• Is the fire department immediately notified whenever the fire alarm system is activated? Some schools investigate the alarm first and then notify the fire department. This delay can put more people at risk. The fire department should automatically be notified of ALL alarms.
• Are smoking, candles and Halogen lamps prohibited in the residence halls? If not, they should be.
• Does the school have policies that electrical appliances and power strips be certified as safe and reliable?
• How much fire prevention training does the residence hall staff receive?
• How often do the students themselves receive fire prevention education? This should continue throughout their academic career, not just while they are living in the residence halls.
• How frequently are evacuation drills conducted? There should be at least one per semester.
• What is the school’s disciplinary policy towards students that cause false alarms or fail to evacuate during an alarm?
• Does the school provide fire extinguisher training for all students?

For more information on Campus Fire Safety Month, go to www.CampusFireSafetyMonth.org. An updated list of the states that have signed proclamations can be found in the site’s Resource Library.

Campus Firewatch, in publication since 2000, is a monthly electronic newsletter focusing on campus fire safety.For more information, visit www.campus-firewatch.com.