More than one-third of all accidents occur in or around the home. Over twenty thousand people die in home accidents each year. Approximately two thousand of these people were between the ages of 15 and 24.

      Falls are the most common type of home accident, occurring most frequently to young children and older adults. Teenagers are most often injured or killed in home accidents caused by fires, poisonings, falls and firearms. You can help prevent home accidents by reducing the environmental hazards and human errors that cause them.

Fires

      Several thousand people die each year in home fires. Several hundred of these people are teenagers like yourself. Most of these individuals do not die from burns but from smoke inhalation. Inhaling smoke and other toxic fumes is smoke inhalation. Many deaths could be prevented by following these simple safety measures to prevent fires and to prevent small fires from becoming larger ones.

Fire Safety Steps

• Keep matches and lighters away from children. Do not leave a burning cigarette unattended. Put tobacco ashes in an empty metal can when cleaning ashtrays.
• Install smoke alarms especially near bedroom areas.
• Keep a fire extinguishers in the kitchen.
• Tape such emergency telephone numbers as the police and fire departments to each telephone for quick reference.
• Keep such flammable materials as paper away from heat sources.
• Store such flammable fluids as gasoline and kerosene in their original containers or in safety cans. Keep the containers away from such heat sources as furnaces. Wipe up flammable liquid and grease pills immediately. Dispose of used rags in a metal containers to help keep the rag from igniting spontaneously. Get rid of the rags as soon as possible.
• Check appliances and other electrical equipment regularly from frayed cords, cracked plugs and loose electrical connections. Do not overload electrical outlets, fuses and circuits. Unplug such appliances as irons, toasters, and hair dryers when not in use. Avoid running electrical wires under carpets, through doors or over nails.
• Do not put heat sources such as stoves and space heaters near window drapes and curtains.

Falls

      The majority of people who die from injuries due to falls are over the age of sixty-five. However, people in every age group are susceptible to injuries due to falls. Falls are most often occur on stairs, on floors and other surfaces and from ladders or other objects used for climbing. Personal factors such as hurrying, carelessness, and carrying objects that block vision, cause many falls. Environmental factors that cause falls include poor lighting on stairs, objects on stairs, spills and unsturdy objects used for climbing.

      Most of the personal and environmental factors that cause falls can be controlled. You can reduce the risk of falls by learning to recognize and reduce these factors. You might want to start with softly steps.