subject: Drinking and House Fires: A Dangerous Home Security Combination [print this page] Drinking and House Fires: A Dangerous Home Security Combination
The last thing most of us are thinking when we sit down with friends to have a drink and enjoy the evening is that the night will end in disaster. Even responsible adults, however, are far more likely to suffer many kinds of accidents and mishaps when alcohol is involved. Slips, trips and falls, with the involvement of alcohol, account for thousands of injuries and even deaths each and every year. Another concern that many people fail to address is that of the house fire. It surprises many people to hear that nearly half of all residential fires are alcohol related. Think that can't possibly be the case? Here are some of the ways that it happens.
To begin with, alcohol is often consumed at night, meaning people will tend to light candles, tiki torches, and other ambiance creating' items to enhance the look, smell, or feel of their gathering. Sometimes a bonfire is involved, and often when entertaining the grill is lit. This small handful of examples can easily get out of hand, and with the effects of alcohol both slowing down the guests' reaction times and speeding up the spread of the fire, the recipe can equal disaster. When fire spreads to the house, knowing how to react can also be more difficult when under the influence of alcohol, and guests may feel more invincible, leading them to attempt heroic, but impossible feats in order to rescue friends and family members. This is especially true when children are sleeping upstairs.
Another behavior which often accompanies drinking but can be a home security risk at any time is smoking. When a person is drinking or drunk, cigarettes can easily get knocked to the ground or can be left out as one falls asleep. Most people know not to smoke in bed for this very reason, but when the poor judgement from alcohol is combined with the increased desire to smoke, reason tends to go out the window. A good rule of thumb is to limit smoking in the house to one area where it can easily be controlled, like an enclosed porch, the kitchen or the den, or to simply require that all smoking be done out of doors.
Whether a person has been drinking or not, the kitchen is one of the most dangerous rooms in the home when it comes to home security and safety. The impulse to eat often leads to the decision to cook food while drunk. This can cause careless accidents to quickly escalate into full on residential fires. The individual may walk away, forgetting about the item being cooked until it is too late, put unsafe materials in the microwave, or even fall asleep while something is in the oven or on the stove. These actions can lead to a fire starting and consuming the home while the individual soundly sleeps.
Regardless of why they start, residential fires can be kept under control by using smoke alarms in every room of the house. They can also be stopped quickly by investing in a monitored home security system with flood and fire protection. Playing it safe while drinking alcohol along with a little preparation and protection, can go an awfully long way towards good home security.
