Have you ever been asked to give a public education safety presentation to a local community group? Have you ever questioned whether your messages are accurate and up-to-date? You are not alone and there is a resource out there to help you.
The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) created the Educational Messages Advisory Committee that meets annually to review educational fire-safety messages. These fire-safety experts provide recommendations to NFPA public education staff for updating and revising the messages. The messages are influenced by NFPA codes and standards.
You can find these messages in the NFPA’s free Educational Messages Desk Reference, 2017 Edition. The messages are intended to be used by members of fire and emergency services, fire- and life-safety educators, and other fire-safety advocates, so that accurate and consistent language is used when relaying safety information to the public.
Desk Reference is easy to use
The reference is divided into three sections. Educational messages arranged by topic are found in the first section. Each topic area is self-contained and written so that all the information needed on a certain subject is provided within that category. There are 20 chapters, and the topics covered include:
- Home smoke alarms.
- Home fire sprinklers.
- Carbon monoxide.
- Candles.
- Portable fire extinguishers and firefighting.
- Medical oxygen.
The second section provides educational messages for children — specifically for preschoolers, kindergarteners, and grades 1 and 2. The third section provides educational messages that are easy to read and are designed for people with limited English understanding.
Desk Reference is updated each year
The messages are reviewed every year by fire safety experts. A recent change to the 2017 edition was related to the placement of smoke alarms and sleeping with a door closed. The committee is recommending that more research be done to find out the following: whether a closed door delays early warning from a smoke alarm that is placed outside the sleeping room, and if fire deaths differ when the fire begins in the room where the door is closed.
Link to the Desk Referance: 2017 Edition