UofL Fire Marshal Dwain Archer has released the following safety tips for students and employees to follow prior to leaving on holiday vacation.
- Please do not decorate more than 33 percent of room doors and walls with decorative combustibles
- Do not hang decorations on exit doors, ceilings, sprinkler heads, fire safety equipment, or hand railings
- Do not run electrical wire between or beneath door jambs as this wire pinching may create excessive heat and cause a fire
- Cut Christmas trees, hay bales, or other dried vegetation are prohibited for use inside university buildings
- Use only electrical equipment including extension cords and Christmas tree lights, and other equipment that bears Underwriters Laboratory (UL) approval tags or other recognized test laboratory designations
- Before leaving for the holidays, disconnect space heaters, decorative lights, personal coffee pots, battery chargers, and other non-essential energy consuming appliances
- Unblock exit paths in rooms, offices, and hallways and have no longer needed furniture and equipment picked up by Surplus Property
- Lower office temperature thermostats to the holiday setting of 55◦F
- At Home: Remember to install fresh batteries in each of your smoke detectors; there should be a smoke detector in each bedroom. Inspect your fire extinguisher and shake up the caked powder inside
- Attempt to open bedroom windows to ensure that they have not been inadvertently painted shut
- Water your live Christmas tree frequently
A wise man once said, “There are two things you should never leave unattended, those being newly poured concrete that needs to be leveled out before it dries; and food on the stove during its cooking process.”
For questions or comments, please contact Dwain Archer at 502-852-3473, or visit the fire safety website.
