If you smoke, put it out. 
All the way. Every time.

Smoking & Home Fires: A campaign to prevent the #1 cause of home fire deaths. 

United States Fire Administration

16825 South Seton Avenue 

Emmitsburg, MD 21727 

www.usfa.dhs.gov/smoking (English)
www.usfa.dhs.gov/fumar (Spanish) 

Dear Friends of the United States Fire Administration: 

Its a fact that smoking is the number one cause of home fire deaths. On average, 1,000 people (smokers and nonsmokers) are killed in smoking-related home fires every year. Most people are asleep when the fires occur. The good news is that with your help, smoke-related fires can be prevented by spreading the word about a few simple precautions. 

USFA has developed a Smoking & Home Fires Campaign to assist you in your efforts to reduce fire deaths among smokers and those who live with smokers in your community. The campaign strategy is to urge smokers 
to Put it Out. All the Way. Every Time. This fire safety message was chosen following input from focus groups of smokers and non-smokers who live with smokers, as well as with fire service personnel in pilot cities. In addition to encouraging smokers to Put It Out. All the Way. Every Time, it is a reminder to smokers and people who live with smokers that they must be alert because Cigarettes dont know when you are asleep. 

The Smoking & Home Fires Campaign will promote fire-safe smoking practices through educational materials,organization-sponsored community events, and a consumer-friendly campaign Web site. 

This CD-ROM provides you with everything you will need to plan and carry out your own Smoking & Home Fires Campaign. Remember, all of the materials are for your free and unrestricted use, and are available in both English and Spanish. To avoid materials shortages we have created easy-to-reproduce, high-quality materials for you to copy and use. 

The USFA now includes a Smoking & Home Fires Campaign section on its Web site, which may be viewed by visiting www.usfa.dhs.gov/smoking. Please encourage people in your organization and community to visit the 
new site for fire prevention and safety information. You can also download and print most of the materials on this CD from the Web site. 

Here is a rundown of the materials on the CD and some suggestions for how you can use them: 

Campaign Materials 

Click on the first folder, Campaign Materials, which has everything youll need to shape your own Smoking & Home Fires Campaign. Take a close look at Talking Points for Community Presentations, which offers 
basic statistics and campaign messages, and then suggestions on Ways to Spread the Smoking & Home Fires Campaign Throughout Your Community. 

This folder also contains the following materials for use throughout your community: 

 Brochure 
The double-sided trifold includes campaign messages, shocking photos of how quickly a smoking-related fire can spread, and a few words from a fire service officer who has witnessed first-hand accounts of these deadly fires. The brochure is easy-to-print and distribute. 

 Poster 
This 8.5 x 11 poster, which reads, Cigarettes dont know when you are asleep, can be printed and posted throughout your community. To order standard-sized posters, please visit www.usfa.dhs.gov/smoking. 

 Fact Sheets (General and Consumer Friendly) 
The CD includes two fact sheets from which you can choose depending on the audience. The general fact sheet includes comprehensive facts on smoking and home fires. The consumer friendly fact sheet includes more photos so that the consumer can see safe action steps for putting out smoking materials. 

 PowerPoint Presentations 
The PowerPoint presentations, which include campaign messages and action steps, are helpful tools when presenting the Smoking & Home Fires Campaign in front of an audience. One presentation has some graphics, but it performs best when used on a computer that does not have a lot of memory. 

If you have a computer with a lot of memory that can handle large files, the second, more advanced presentation is ideal. It includes video clips, which have been embedded in the presentation. The clips include a demonstration of a fast-moving smoking-related home fire, the best way to stub out smoking materials, and members of the fire service giving testimonies about preventable smoking-related home fires. 

 Video of Smoking-Home Fire Countdown 
When pitching to television stations or newspapers with online editions, you can send them the standalone video clip of a smoking-home fire. The demonstration, which runs 5 minutes and 35 seconds, includes a digital countdown showing how fast a fire caused by smoking materials can spread.
 
 Letterhead 
The CD also includes letterhead on which you can print the press release and media cover letter. Your organizations logo can be inserted on the letterhead when printing. 

Media Outreach Materials 

In the second folder, you can view the media outreach materials, including some tips included in Working with the Media. This section also includes the following materials: 

 Print Public Service Ads (PSAs) 
Printer-ready public service ads are available in a variety of sizes in English and Spanish. The Working with the Media document offers suggestions for asking local newspapers and magazines to run the print ads. The high resolution print ad PDFs on the CD provide the quality that publications need for running the Smoking & Home Fires Campaign ads. Either e-mail the ad PDF to your contact at the newspaper or magazine or lend your contact the CD. Publications can also download the high 
resolution print ads from www.usfa.dhs.gov/smoking. 

 Sample News Release 
Send the news release to local media outlets to announce your new Smoking & Home Fires Campaign and let them know how your organization is reaching out in the community to reduce smoke-related home fires. You can print the press release on the enclosed Smoking & Home Fires letterhead or on 
your organizational letterhead. Tailor the release with your organization and spokespersons name, and adapt the quotes and other content to reflect the situation in your community. Go back to the Working with the Media document for suggestions on how to use the news release effectively. 

 Sample Radio PSA  Live-Read Scripts 
There are 15-second, 20-second, and 30-second live-read radio PSA scripts that you can tailor to include your organizations name. Send them to the public service directors at your local radio stations. If working with your local fire department, you can offer your local Fire Chief as the live-read PSA spokesperson. 

 Sample Media Cover Letter 
Tailor the pitch letter with your organization or departments information  and personalize the letter by adding the date and recipients name, media organization, and address. You can tailor the letter to accompany the news release, the radio live-read PSAs, and/or the print public service ads. Working with the Media will provide you with additional tips for getting results. 

E-Mail 
Tailor the sample e-mail with contact information from your organization or department. Send it to friends, relatives, community leaders, smokers and those who live with smokers throughout your community and encourage them to forward the e-mail to their networks, too. 

Request for Your Feedback 

We are looking for ways to evaluate the usefulness and effectiveness of the materials to determine what works best in your community. Please take a moment and let us know your thoughts on the CD Toolkit. Send your 
feedback to usfa@hagersharp.com or return the enclosed Campaign Feedback Form via fax or e-mail. 

Thank you! 

On behalf of USFA I would like to express our appreciation to you for supporting this nationwide effort to reduce the injury and fatalities associated with smoking-related home fires. We are eager to hear how the Smoking & Home Fires Campaign goes in your community. 

Sincerely, 

Kathy Gerstner 
Fire Program Specialist 

U.S. Fire Administration