Two kids were trapped in a deadly building fire with no way out — but one small action kept them safe until firefighters broke in
Many fire safety tips can turn out to be life-saving in hazardous situations. A family experienced that in real-time after their house caught fire. Luckily, the firefighters could reach them on time and get them out of the house. The two kids and their dad also got out of the place without any serious injuries, according to the department. The assistant fire chief pointed out that the family had done one important thing that saved their lives in the situation, per NBC Washington.
The Washington family was sleeping in their basement room when their house started burning. They called 911 to inform the authorities about their situation at around nine in the morning. There were two kids inside the house, who had no way of escaping the fire as it had already gotten pretty severe. The 16-year-old and 5-year-old stay put inside the room. In just a couple of minutes, the firefighters and the emergency medical services arrived at the scene and got the children out safely. The flames were already pretty severe by the time the fire department arrived, but neither of them had any life-threatening injuries, according to the firefighters present at the scene. One simple thing saved their lives — a closed door.
Assistant Fire Chief Anthony Kelleher explained that the closed bedroom door allowed the children to stay safe from the fire for a longer time, as well as safeguard themselves from smoke inhalation. "The one thing that definitely helped to transport those children in non-life-threatening condition or not have more serious injuries is the fact that they were sleeping with the door closed in the basement," Anthony pointed out. "It can be a matter of life and death and I’d say today that was absolutely the case." The family was taken to the hospital once they could get out of the house to treat any injuries they had suffered because of the incident.
The department revealed that closing the bedroom door can be helpful in cases when a fire starts somewhere else in the house. They encouraged people to remember a simple line, "Close before you doze," to stay safe during such incidents. According to the County of Los Angeles Fire Department, closing the bedroom door should be a part of a person's nighttime routine. It can slow down the spread of flames. The practice can also stop gases, smoke and heat from filling up a person's room while they are still asleep. The department explained that the fire's speed of spreading inside a house is getting faster because of the synthetic materials used in the furniture. Closing the door can decrease the speed and increase the escape time for a person to some extent.
There are several other things that people can do to keep themselves and their house safe from fire. In another story, a firefighter's wife explained that one common household item can cause really dangerous fires. The woman, Jesse, revealed that exhaust fans, which are present in most homes, can cause the most disastrous house fires. These kinds of flames have the potential to burn the house down, per the woman's TikTok page, @unhingedreviewswjess. Exhaust fans are cleaned and maintained less and can cause fire because of the heat from the gathered dust. As the fire happens above the ceiling, it isn't detected by fire alarms immediately and can cause serious damaging effects.