When I was in college there was a standing warning against having a hotplate in our dorm room. Of course, everyone I knew kept one anyway.
But it is fairly dangerous to do so. The number one cause of dorm room fires is cooking.
But the
U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) points out that high-powered electronics, overloaded power strips, microwaves, candles and torch lamps can cause fires too.
The CPSC says:
According to
National Fire Protection Association [NFPA] data, the estimated number of fires in campus housing has risen dramatically in recent years, from a low of 1,800 fires in 1998 to 3,300 fires in 2005. From 2000 through 2005 there were 39 deaths and nearly 400 injuries.
"Going to college marks an important milestone, and the CPSC doesn't want that to be marred by a potentially tragic fire," said Acting CPSC Chairman Nancy Nord. "Students bring things from home to make dorm life more comfortable, including high-powered electronics and appliances. These items can make life easier, but also more dangerous when used improperly or left unsupervised, particularly in small dorm rooms."
CPSC and NFPA recommend following these College Dorm Fire Safety Tips:
- Cooking equipment causes 72% of dorm fires. Students should cook in designated areas only, and never leave cooking equipment unattended when in use.
- As far as deaths and injuries are concerned, most occur in sleeping areas, and are associated with smoking materials like tobacco products, candles, and incense. Always extinguish flames before leaving the room or going to sleep.
- Electrical products, portable heaters, and lighting such as halogen lamps are the source of many dorm fires. Keep combustibles away from heat sources and don’t overload electrical outlets, extension cords, and power strips.
- Take special care with holiday and seasonal decorations. Don't use combustible materials and never block access to safety devices, doors, etc.
- Know your building's evacuation plan in case something does go wrong.
- Don't disable smoke alarms.
What Ever Happened to the Bird Flu Scare?
It seems as though the whole bird flu pandemic story flew away. Is the scare over? Are we safe?
The
problem just keeps chugging along. Last week the World Health
Organization (WHO) Web site confirmed that an Indonesian woman died from
bird flu.
That makes 83 fatal cases of bird flu in Indonesia.
Reuters points out:
- Since the virus re-emerged in Asia in 2003, outbreaks have been
confirmed in around 60 countries and territories, according to data
from the World Organization for Animal Health.
- More than 30 countries have reported outbreaks in the past year, in most cases involving wild birds such as swans.
- The virus has killed at least 194 people since 2003, according to the
WHO. Countries with confirmed human deaths are: Azerbaijan, Cambodia,
China, Egypt, Indonesia, Iraq, Laos, Nigeria, Thailand, Turkey and
Vietnam.
- In total, the virus is known to have infected 321
people since 2003, according to the WHO. Many of the dead are children
and young adults.
- The WHO says that Vietnam and Indonesia have the highest number of cases, accounting for 125 of the total deaths.
- The H5N1 virus is not new to science and was responsible for an
outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza in Scotland in 1959.
Britain confirmed new cases in birds in Scotland in April 2006 and in
eastern England in February 2007.
Even though the talk of a pandemic has cooled, there is a lot of
prevention, research and planning going on that might deserve some
attention.
Here is a Web site that focuses just on government pandemic preparations.
We are always looking for your great ideas. Send Al a few sentences and hot links.
Editor's
Note: Al's Morning Meeting is a compendium of ideas, edited story
excerpts and other materials from a variety of Web sites, as well as
original concepts and analysis. When the information comes directly
from another source, it will be attributed and a link will be provided
whenever possible. The column is fact-checked, but depends on the
accuracy and integrity of the original sources cited. Errors and
inaccuracies found will be corrected.
Most Americans learn about fire safety at an early age....
