Safety Tips

		Safety Tips

07/22/10

SAFETY INFORMATION

Is YOUR Number Up?

Firefighters and ambulance personnel waste no time answering an alarm. Everything they do is calculated and rehearsed to save every possible second. The trouble is, they can't always find your house in a hurry. Why? Because the house number can't be seen...or can't easily be read from the street.

Take a look at your house number from the street at night to see if it is completely visible and easily readable, and whether the lighting is adequate for someone to read who is not familiar with it.

Help us help you by ensuring that your address is easily readable from the street at all times. Also, if you have an alley behind your home, consider placing your house numbers on your back door.

Teach your kids to dial 9-1-1

Teach your child to call from the house phone -- not the cell phone. Once the call from a house phone is made, the child really doesn't need to say anything else to get help. Of course, the more detailed the information available to emergency crews, the better the response will be.

Tell your child not to hang up until told to do so. In most cases, 911 call-takers (operators) will keep kids on the line until responders arrive. Children want to know someone is there.

Kids have a tendency to mumble when they're nervous. Stress the importance of being heard and understood. The recording equipment and computers make it difficult to hear at some 911 centers.

Make sure your child can say his or her first and last name to the call-taker. He or she will use the child's name repeatedly.

Your child should listen to the questions carefully, and ask the call-taker to repeat if necessary.

Stress to your child the absolute importance not to make things up. Kids may see the call-taker's questions as a sort of quiz, and feel they let someone down if they don't know the answer. That can lead to some creative answers. It's much better for them to just say they're not sure and move on the next question.

Have your child practice on an unplugged phone. They can dial 911 and you can be the call-taker. Ask them questions about the pretend incident. Do this kind of role-playing repeatedly. Kids like make-believe and repetition.

Teach your child when to call 911. Use basic concepts like when an adult can't wake up, any fire that happens without an adult, or an intruder in the home. Kids get the number down (it's only three digits after all), but they sometimes get confused with when to call. Don't be discouraged if your child can't explain the right situations to you. They often understand intuitively even when they can't explain it. Encourage them to trust their "gut" feelings, and if in doubt, to call.

The older the child gets, the more detailed discussions you can have about the appropriate use of 911. It's extremely important that kids not use 911 as a joke. In most jurisdictions, calling 911 for any reason other than an emergency is grounds for a citation and a fine.

IEMA Press Release

Pat Quinn, Governor

Joe Klinger, Interim Director

Heat-related illnesses range from heat cramps to the potentially life-threatening heat stroke. It’s

important for people to recognize the symptoms of these maladies and know what actions to take

if they or someone near them becomes ill. Symptoms and recommended treatment actions

include:

• Heat Cramps: Twitching or painful spasms, usually in muscles of legs or abdomen

during or after heavy physical activity, as well as heavy sweating and thirst. Treatment

includes stopping activity and resting in a cool place. Lightly stretch or gently massage

muscles to relieve spasms, and give sips of cool water or electrolyte drink to sufferer.

• Heat Exhaustion: Heavy sweating, with cool, pale and clammy skin. Pulse is fast and

weak and breathing is fast and shallow. Victim will have normal temperature or a lowgrade

fever. Fainting, vomiting, dizziness, nausea and headache are common. Treatment

includes having the victim lie down in a cool place. Apply cool, wet cloths and give sips

of cool water or electrolyte drink. Contact doctor if symptoms worsen or do not improve

within 30 minutes.

• Heat Stroke: High body temperature of 103 -106 degrees F. Victim will have hot, red,

dry skin, and sweating may be heavy or have stopped. Breathing is fast and shallow, and

other symptoms include headache, nausea, dizziness and confusion, with possible

unconsciousness or seizure. Heat stroke is a life-threatening medical situation requiring

emergency medical treatment.

Tips on how to protect yourself and others from heat-related illnesses are available on the state’s

Ready Illinois website (www.Ready.Illinois.gov). Some of those tips include:

• Avoid overexertion and strenuous outdoor activities during extreme heat.

• Consume plenty of non-alcoholic, non-caffeinated fluids, even if you don’t feel thirsty.

• Exposure to air conditioning for even a few hours a day will reduce the risk for heat related

illness.

• Keep lights in your home low or off, keep shades drawn and avoid using the oven.

• Closely monitor children, the elderly and those who require special care during periods of

intense summer heat.

• Do not leave children or pets in a closed vehicle, even for a few minutes. On a hot day,

temperatures inside a closed vehicle can reach 140 degrees F.

For other tips on staying cool and reducing cooling costs during the summer, visit the state of

Illinois’ Keep Cool Illinois website at www.keepcool.illinois.gov.

This site was last updated 07/22/10