A nationwide campaign to get cottagers thinking about fire safety has been launched in Huntsville, on the shore of Hunter’s Bay.
“When they leave the city, cottagers tend to leave their brain behind,” said David Tiller, fire prevention officer for Huntsville and Lake of Bays. “That’s what they’re supposed to do, right? It’s about relaxation, so they just forget about safety.”
When it comes to fire know-how, it’s important to apply the same rules at your cottage that you have at your home, he said.
That means having smoke detectors on each floor, fire extinguishers available and practicing an escape plan with your family and visitors.
Assistant fire chief Terry Joiner said there are special considerations for seasonal visitors.
“You’ve got to know your exact address,” he said. “It sounds silly, but a lot of people just know that they’re right down the dirt road and you make a right at the big red tree. We cover 1,100 square miles so we need to know exactly.”
When 911 calls are placed from cell phones – the way a lot of cottagers dial out – the fire department dispatcher has no way of tracing the call’s location.
Fire extinguishers are especially important in cottages because the fire department will probably take longer to get to a rural location, Joiner said.
The misconceptions are “quite shocking,” said Carol Heller, the vice president of Kidde, the smoke detector company supporting the campaign.
She said a recent Ipsos Reid survey found that 74 per cent of Canadians think that a smoke detector doesn’t need changing if it beeps when its button is pushed, even if it’s older than 10 years.
Heller emphasized that smoke detectors are often tampered with, and that 54 per cent of Canadians admitted to turning them off. Detectors with temporary silencers lasting five to seven minutes are a much better option.
The campaign called Peace of Mind for your Piece of Heaven was launched in Muskoka because it’s an area that “personifies leisure living in Canada,” said Gary Holloway, a spokesperson for the project.
Things to remember- Change your smoke detector’s battery at least once a year and replace the entire unit every 10 years
- Have a fire extinguisher handy, one every 600 square feet
- Know your 911 number and street name. Make sure every visitor at your cottage has this information
- Install a carbon monoxide detector if you have a gas or wood fireplace
- Practice an escape plan
