How To Make a Fire Escape Plan With Young Kids

Several decades ago, families had roughly seventeen minutes to escape a house fire. Because of synthetic furnishings and open floor plans, researchers at UL's Fire Safety Research Institute now estimate three minutes or less. That leaves no time to gather belongings, locate pets, or make decisions in the moment.

The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) therefore recommends a written, drawn plan. Sketch the home, mark two exits from every room, and choose one meeting place in front of the house that never changes, such as the mailbox or a particular tree. Practice twice a year, including once in the dark, since many fires occur at night. With young children, announce a night drill in advance rather than surprising them; the goal is confidence, not fear.

This finding surprises most parents. In sleep-laboratory studies at Nationwide Children's Hospital, a standard high-pitched smoke alarm woke only about half of sleeping children ages 5 to 12, and younger children were the least likely to respond. An alarm using a recording of the mother's voice woke nearly nine in ten. Children under five were not studied, because fire-safety experts consider them too young to escape on their own. The researchers' recommendation is clear: escape plans should include adults waking and rescuing children.

Assign each adult in the household specific children to wake, by name, and include that assignment in every drill. Close bedroom doors at night as well. In UL testing, rooms behind closed doors stayed below 100 degrees with far lower levels of carbon monoxide, while rooms with open doors exceeded 1,000 degrees.

Teach four skills in sequence, each practiced as a physical action rather than a fact. Get low and go, crawling beneath the smoke where the air is cleaner. Check the door with the back of the hand before opening it, and if it is hot, use the second exit. Never hide: frightened children often retreat to a closet or under a bed, where firefighters cannot see them. Get out and stay out, never returning inside for a toy, a pet, or a person.

Children also need a backup plan for when both exits are blocked: keep the door closed, place a towel or blanket along the gap beneath it, go to the window, and signal with a flashlight, glow stick, or bright cloth so firefighters can locate them. Children on upper floors should wait at the window for help rather than attempt to climb out alone.

Finally, familiarize your child with firefighters. In full gear, with a mask and loud breathing equipment, a firefighter can be frightening to a young child. Showing pictures, playing the sound of the mask, or visiting a fire station makes it far less likely that a child will hide from the person sent to rescue them.