Posted on: Friday, August 26, 2005
10 ways to play it safe in and around your home
By Kathy Van Mullekom
Knight Ridder News Service
Unintentional home injuries cause more than 20 million medical visits annually, according to the Home Safety Council.
That makes this a good time to evaluate and improve the safety around your house and yard.
Here are some tips from the council to help you find ways to prevent accidents at home.
Install smoke alarms on every level of your home and test them monthly.
Develop a fire escape plan for your family that identifies two exits out of every room and where to meet outside. Hold a family fire drill at least twice each year.
Always stay in the kitchen while food is cooking on the stove.
Keep all stairways, paths and walkways well lit.
Install grab bars in bath and shower stalls, and use a nonslip mat or adhesive safety strips inside bathtubs and showers.
Post emergency numbers next to every phone in your home, including the Poison Control Hotline at (800) 222-1222. Also, program these numbers into your cell phone.
Install child locks on all cabinets used to store dangerous items.
Keep your water heater setting at 120 degrees or less.
Install four-sided fencing with self-locking gates. Fencing should isolate the pool from the home and be at least five feet high.
Constantly supervise children in or near water such as pools, ponds, bathtubs and buckets.
To learn more about how to stay safe in and around your home, see homesafetycouncil.org.
