Just the Facts, Please, ... on Home Fire Causes

Every year U.S. fire departments respond to nearly 2 million fires, with three-quarters of them occurring in residences. Fire costs our national billions of dollars every year in property loss and thousands of lives lost.

The place where Americans feel safest -- at home -- is the very place where we are at greatest risk from fire. If Americans knew more about fire prevention and better understood how to react quickly and sensibly when fire breats out, we could greatly reduce fire deaths.

Here are a few facts:

What are the most common causes of fatal home fires?

• Cooking equipment. From 1992 to 1996, an annaul average of 97,3000 cooking fires caused 310 civilian deaths, 4,830 civilian injuries and almost $400 million in direct property damage.
• Heating equipment causes over 70,000 fires a year
• Arson or suspected arson causes over 50,000 fires a year
• Other (or unspecified) household equipment causes over 40,000 fires a year
• Electrical distribution equipment, including wiring, lamps, outlets, switches, fuses, and the circuit breakers cause over 37,000 fires a year.

When do the majority of fatal home fires occur?

They happen at night, when most people are asleep. Smoking is the #1 cause of fatal home fires. Smoking caused an average of 850 deaths per year from 1992 to 1996. An average of 610 deaths occur annually from arson or suspected arson; 510 deaths caused by heating equipment; 360 deaths from electrical distribution equipment; and an average of 340 deaths occur annually as a result of children playing with fire, and the deaths are usually the children themselves.

How do most people die in home fires?

One quarter of home-fire victims die from burns; seven out of 10 die from breathing poisonous gases produced by the fire.

What are those deadly gases?

The most common deadly gas produced by a fire is carbon monoxide (produced by all burning items). Other significant gases include hydrogen cyanide (from burning wool, silk, nylon and some plastics), hydrogen chloride and carbon dioxide.

Aren't oxygen levels decreased in a fire?

Fire consumes oxygen, reducing the air's normal (21 percent) oxygen level. Whent he atmospheric oxygen drops below 17 percent, people get extremely disoriented. When it drops to between 6 and 10 percent, people can't breathe. In fire situations, hot air and smoke rise and some deadly gases sink to the floor. That's why the National Fire Protection Association teaches that if you have to escape a fire through a smoke-filled building, you should crawl with your head in the "safety zone" ( 1 - 2 feet or 30-60 centimeters) above the floor, where there's likely to be more oxygen and less deadly gas.