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BEACON NEWSLETTER TEAM

LT COL SHARON WILLIAMS

Inside this Issue

Republished Articles

Pages

Smoke Alarm 1 Fireplace Safety 2-3 Halloween Safety 4-5 Who Needs a Flu Vaccine? 6 Heat Safety Tool 7 Not so Model Behavior 8-9 Heads Up 10 Flight Risk Analysis Tool 11 Collision Avoidance 12 Region Safety Officers 13

Col Alex Kay CAP/SE safety@capnhq.gov Lt Col Dennis R. Bannon Asst CAP/SE Mishap Reviews safety@capnhq.gov Lt Col Eric Shappee Asst CAP/SE Education safety@capnhq.gov Lt Col Melanie Capehart Asst CAP/SE Cadet Programs safety@capnhq.gov Mr. Axel Kreimeier NHQ Safety Team Liaison safety@capnhq.gov

The safety beacon is for informational purposes only and does not replace Safety Education requirementOctober 2013

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FIREPLACE SAFETY

FACTSHEET

WWW.HPBA.ORG

PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE

Have the chimney inspected annually, and

cleaned as necessary, by a professional chimney

sweep to ensure it’s clear of obstructions and

creosote.

Have a cap installed at the top of the chimney

to avoid the possibility that debris or animals can

block the chimney.

Install both a smoke and carbon monoxide

detector. (Make sure the batteries work.)

Keep a fire extinguisher on hand.

Make sure the area around the fireplace is

clear of furniture, books, newspapers and other

potentially flammable materials. (Two feet away is

a good rule.)

LIGHTING FIRE

Clean out ashes from previous fires. Open the

damper.

Use a fireplace grate.

Keep glass doors open during the fire.

Use fireplace tools to tend the fire.

Build a safe fire.

Always close the firescreen when in use.

Addit ional Fireplace Safety Tips on reverse side

USING COMMON SENSE

Never burn garbage, rolled newspapers,

charcoal or plastic in the fireplace.

Never use gasoline or any liquid accelerant to

help start a fire.

Keep small children and pets away from the

fireplace.

Never leave a fire unattended.

Don’t close the damper until the embers have

completely stopped burning.

Make sure the fire is completely out before

going to bed or leaving the house.

When cleaning the fireplace, store ashes in a

non-combustible container with a tightly fitting lid

and place the container away from the house.

Never burn a Christmas tree in the fireplace.

STARTING A SAFE FIRE

Creating a perfect fire starts with using

seasoned firewood cut to the correct length.

To start a safe fire, crumple paper on the

grate within the fireplace and cover it with

kindling or a manufactured firestarter. Open

the fireplace damper fully and light the paper.

Once the kindling or the firestarter is burning

brightly, add dry seasoned wood to the fire

and shut the firescreen. It’s important to avoid

overloading the fireplace so the firewood

doesn’t tumble out. A couple of logs will

suffice. Burning a manufactured firelog

purchased from the grocery or hardware

store is a good alternative to firewood, and

does not require paper to get the fire started.

W oodburning and gas f ireplaces are designed t o safely provide years

of comfort , w armt h and relaxat ion. To ensure t hey can do t heir job,

f irep laces require maint enance and proper operat ion. Before light ing t he

f irst f ire of t he season, t here are a few import ant f ireplace safet y t ips

t o remember.

WOODBURNING FIREPLACE SAFETY AND MAINTENANCE TIPS

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HEAT SAFETY TOOL [En español] By U.S. Department of Labor (DOL), Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA)

This app, available at

https://www.osha.gov/SLTC/heatillness/heat_index/

heat_app.html, or on iTunes, is free, and when

installed on your GPS-enabled smartphone will reach

out to get the latest temperature and humidity

information from the nearest National Weather

Service station. Using that data it will compute a

Heat Index. A touch of a button will give you

OSHA's suggested precautions for the computed risk

level.

Another button will allow you to get the predicted

maximum heat figures for your area, allowing you to

plan ahead.

Remember, the best defense against heat injury is

drinking plenty of water, and allowing adequate time

for rest out of the sun.

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FAA Safety Briefing

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www.afsec.af.mil

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13 The Official Safety Newsletter of the Civil Air Patrol-October 2013

VISIT US ON THE WEB

WWW.GOCIVILAIRPATROL.COM

Col Charles Greenwood

GLR/SE

cgreenwo@bsu.edu

Col Charles Glass

MER/SE

csglass@juno.com

Col Emmit Williams

NCR/SE

se@ncr.cap.gov

Col Robert Castle

SWR/SE

rcastle@cox.net

Lt Col Paul Mondoux

NER/SE paul@nhplm.org

Lt Col Donald Johanson RMR/SE

johansondon@msn.com

Lt Col Bill Woody

SER/SE

wawoody@att.net

Capt Gary Zaganiacz PCR/SE

zaganiaczga@gmail.com