The same message, from four services
| Fire service | What its home safety page says |
|---|---|
| Fire Rescue Victoria | Whenever you are inside, leave the key in any door or security screen you have locked. |
| CFA (Victoria) | Don’t deadlock doors while you’re at home; if you have to, leave the key in the lock. Its checklist adds that keys should stay in locked doors and security screens while you are inside, so you can get out fast. |
| Tasmania Fire Service | Windows and locks must open easily from the inside, so you can get out quickly; everyone in the home should be able to work the barred doors and windows, or talk together about other ways out; ideally, fit deadlocks that open from the inside with no key; while you’re home, deadlock a door only if its key stays in the lock; and keep down the number of keys your deadlocks need. |
| ACT Emergency Services Agency | Make sure guests staying in your home know your home safety plan, including exits and where keys for deadlocks are kept. |
KEY IN THE LOCKKEY SOMEWHERE ELSE
The time you have is short
The CFA says home fires spread quicker than ever because of synthetic fabrics, lightweight building materials and open floor plans, and that you may have as little as two minutes to escape. It also says that of the people who die in home fires, most are overcome by the smoke rather than the flames.
A security screen that needs a key you cannot find spends some of that time. That is why FRV, the CFA and Tasmania Fire Service put the key, or a lock that needs no key from the inside, at the centre of their advice.
A check for tonight, built from their advice
- Walk to every door and window that has a security screen, and see whether it opens from inside.Tasmania Fire Service asks that everyone in the home can work the barred doors and windows.
- Don’t deadlock doors while anyone is home. If you must, leave the key in the lock, and leave keys in locked security screens too.The CFA and Tasmania Fire Service say don’t deadlock while you’re home; FRV and the CFA say to leave keys in locked doors and security screens.
- Count the keys it takes to get out, and look for ways to need fewer.Tasmania Fire Service advises keeping down the number of keys your deadlocks need.
- Mark two ways out of every room on a drawn plan. Doors and windows can both be exits.CFA
- Upstairs, check whether any windows open wide enough to reach the roof.The CFA’s wording; it notes that in newer homes, second-level bedroom windows often can’t be opened fully.
- Tell guests where the exits are and where the deadlock keys are kept.ACT Emergency Services Agency
- Practise the plan.Fire Rescue Victoria says to practise it regularly; Tasmania Fire Service says at least twice a year.
When a window is the second way out
Tasmania Fire Service suggests using windows as an alternative means of escape if it is safe to do so, and having at least two ways out of the house. Healthdirect gives the same advice in its own words: know more than one safe way out of every room.
That sits beside a second duty. Window locks and screens also keep small children from falling, and in NSW strata schemes some windows must have a safety lock. Those rules, and how screens fit them, are on the window safety page. A household plan has to hold both: a window a child cannot fall from, that an adult can still open.
Older people and people with disability
Fire Rescue Victoria says people over 65, people living with disability and those who are ill are at higher risk in a home fire. Among the things it suggests a home escape plan consider are a bedroom close to an exit, and keeping the key in deadlocked doors or security screens while at home: take the key out of a deadlocked door only when you are leaving.
If you rent, Tasmania Fire Service says to talk to your landlord before making changes to locks. The tenancy rules for changing a lock differ by state; see locks in a rental.