Pupils' Response 8-Fire Safety

Fires can happen anywhere for different reasons. Sometimes, fires are caused by human beings because we can be careless. Some people set fires purposefully, for example, the Indonesian farmers set fires to burn down trees and plants to create a new piece of land for farming. Some people set other people's property on fire. This is called 'arson'. Sometimes, fires are caused by natural things, eg. lightning that strikes a tree can start a fire. Extremely dry and hot weather in Australia sometimes causes the dried up brush to catch fire. These are called 'bush fires'.


So, fire safety and knowing what to do when a fire occurs is very important. The Fire Safety Bureau (FSB) controls fire safety in all buildings in Singapore. It makes sure that all buildings have smoke-free passageways to exits, fire alarms to warn everyone in the building and fire fighting appliances, such as fire extinguishers.
Sometimes fires can be helpful/useful. For example, fire for cooking can be helpful. It can help you to cook food like chicken, fish or porridge, etc. This also means fire safety starts at home. When you cook, you should watch the fire and not leave it unattended.

Call the 995 if there's a fire or when you need an ambulance. Call 1800 280 0000 when you need Fire Safety Consultation/Advice.



It is also very important to know how to evacuate a place when a fire starts/occurs. This is why most buildings have fire drills to practise evacuating from a building. In this way, if a real fire occurs/starts, you know what to do! This is why my school, Anderson Primary School also practises fire safety. We have fire drills twice a year. During each fire drill, the bell will ring for a very long time to signal the beginning of the fire drill. Everyone has to assemble in the field according to our classes in an orderly manner.



If a fire breaks out in my house, I will try to use water to put it out if it is a small one. If it is a big one, the fire alarm in my house will go off. I will try to escape through the front door if I can, and run down the stairs. We should not use the lifts if there is a fire in case the lifts stop and we get burnt inside the lift. I live on the 2nd floor so it is easy for me to get to the 1st floor to escape.

You can download information about what to do during an emergency or a fire from the SCDF website.