Every year in the United States, approximately 4,000 people die in home fires and another 40,000 are injured. Additionally, house fires cost $8 million in property damage annually. Many victims do not die of burns but rather smoke inhalation, because fires often occur at night when victims are asleep.
Smoke detectors are the best way to prevent these catastrophic results. It is recommended that every home not only have smoke detectors but also at least one working fire extinguisher.
The risk of dying from an unprotected home is twice that of a protected home. Approximately 95 percent of U.S. homes have at least one smoke detector, yet 20 percent of fire fatalities occur in homes with broken or disabled detectors.
Fire starts from a chemical reaction between oxygen in the atmosphere and some sort of fuel (most commonly wood or gasoline). For combustion to occur, the fuel has to reach its ignition temperature. When the heated material is burning, it gives off volatile gases, or smoke.Smoke has compounds of hydrogen, carbon, and oxygen along with byproducts of char (except for gasoline fires), ash, and heat. The chemical reactions in a fire generate new heat, which is what sustains the fire. The heat of the flame keeps the fuel at the ignition temperature, so the fire continues to burn as long as there is fuel and oxygen around it. The flame heats any surrounding fuel, which in turn spreads the fire.
Fires from different fuels behave differently; therefore, a fire from a fast-burning fuel that produces a lot of heat will inflict a different sort of damage than a slow-burning, low-heat fire.
When properly installed and maintained, smoke detectors can save your life and the lives of your loved ones at a relatively minuscule cost. Before the concentration of smoke reaches a dangerous level, or before the fire becomes too intense, an alarm sounds to warn you.
It is recommended that every home have at least one smoke detector per floor. The average cost of a smoke alarm is $11, and you can buy one for as little as $7.
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