Canadians feel immune to house fire: survey

Almost half of all Canadians have an “it won’t happen to me” attitude to house fires, according to a new survey commissioned by Duracell and the Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs (CAFC). Although more than one-tenth of Canadians have been victims of home fires, 48% of those surveyed feel there is almost no chance it will happen to them.The study also revealed that 63% of Canadians do not practice their fire escape plan even once a year, although 64% say they do have a plan in place. In 2003, 55% of respondents admitted they did not practice their fire escape plan even once a year.”People don’t seem to be overly concerned with the risk of home fires and that is quite alarming to us,” said Ken Kelly, president of the CAFC. “Every home is at risk of experiencing a fire of some kind, so taking the proper precautions and being prepared to react is crucial.”Of those who have experienced fires, 74% said they “never thought it would happen to me”, and 50% had no fire escape plan in place. But 57% say they changed their practices after the fire occurred, including developing escape plans, staging fire drills, buying fire extinguisher and installing additional smoke alarms.When it comes to smoke alarms, only 28% of respondents say they replace the batteries twice a year as prescribed, while 19% say they have never replaced the batteries at all.The summer time sees increased risk of fire, particularly as families begin to barbeque.