PAP Group · · 3 min read
Fire Safety Week 27 November – 3 December 2021
The purpose of Fire Safety Week is to spark discussion about the importance of fire safety. PAP Group wants to help share information about the event, because fire safety concerns us all.
The aim of Fire Safety Week is to improve fire safety for everyone. One of the themes of Fire Safety Week is improving fire safety in older people’s homes. You can help: the next time you visit an older person, you can check whether their home is safe from fire and test that their smoke alarm works at the same time. A working smoke alarm is really important for the fire safety of older people, because it detects a fire earlier than they would themselves. This gives more time to escape from the home or to put out the fire. The Fire Safety Week website has comprehensive fire safety tips and checklists that are easy to use when reviewing the fire safety of a home, a housing company or a workplace. You will find a link to the Fire Safety Week website at the end of this article. It is worth taking a look at the fire safety tips from the campaign’s ambassadors on the website: Finland’s most positive duo, Lotta & pappa, national team footballer Joel Pohjanpalo and social media star Jennifer Käld.
Fire Safety Week is coordinated by the Finnish National Rescue Association in cooperation with the Ministry of the Interior, the Finnish Chimney Sweeps’ Association (Nuohousalan Keskusliitto), the rescue departments, the Finnish Fire Officers’ Association (Suomen Palopäällystöliitto), Finance Finland, the regional rescue associations, EHYT ry, the Finnish Real Estate Federation (Suomen Kiinteistöliitto) and the Finnish Homeowners’ Association (Suomen Omakotiliitto). Fire Safety Week is funded by the Fire Protection Fund.
Day at the Fire Station, 27 November
Fire Safety Week kicks off with the family event Päivä Paloasemalla (Day at the Fire Station) on Saturday 27 November. The event has been held since 2008. It showcases fire engines and equipment and explains the work of fire brigades. You may even get to try out your first-aid firefighting skills and rescuers’ equipment yourself, among other things. Hundreds of fire stations take part, and you can look up the participating station nearest you (in Finnish). Last year, a virtual fire station was also organised for the first time, and this year it is open from 20 November to 3 December 2021. At the virtual fire station, you can follow the work of fire stations from the comfort of your sofa and learn fire safety skills.
Smoke Alarm Day, 1 December
Nordic Smoke Alarm Day is held every year on the first day of December. On that day, it is a good idea to check that your smoke alarms work and to change the batteries if a year has already passed since they were last changed. You can test a smoke alarm by pressing its button, which makes it sound loudly. A smoke alarm should be replaced in line with the service life stated by the manufacturer, because it collects dust over time, which can impair its performance. A smoke alarm is an easy and inexpensive safety device in case of fire. Make sure that your own smoke alarms and those of your loved ones are in working order.
Read more about Fire Safety Week, the Day at the Fire Station event and Smoke Alarm Day (in Finnish).
See also: Fire safety in homes.
