The Cairo bulletin., 1914-06-15
THE SCHOOLS and !
/, FIRE PREVENTION
Fire Drills viii Avert Panic
Should Be a Feature at
Every School. j
CARELEssNEss CAUSES FIRES
Gov. Edward r. Dunno and superin-
tendent Of Public instruction
Francis q. Blair Endorse the !
Study OF Fire Prevention
In Schools.

In a proclamation issued by Gov.
Edward F. Dunno. proclaiming Octo-
Der 9 as State Fire Prevention day,
he says:
Statistics show that fire waste il
increasing annually and the fire loss
In the state OF Illinois in 1912 aver.
aged $l.000.000 per month. Besides
this, In that year alone nearly four
hundred people in this state lost their
lives through the agency of fire. The
losses thus occasioned constitute an
absolute waste and drain upon our
resources such as no nation or state
can long endure, and the fact that
they are largely preventabls Is O re>
proach to our people and calls for an
immediate remedy"
And among other recommendations
for the observance of Fire Prevention
day appears the following:
Lastly. let fire drills be held on
that day In institutions, factories and
in public, private and parochial
schools, and earnestly recommend
that teachers instruct their pupils.
through short talks and proper pro-
grams, on the dangers of fire and the
simpler means OF fire prevention"
State Fire Marshal Walter H. Ben
nett, in bulletin issued to the princi-
pals and superintendents of schools In
the state of Illinois calls their atten-
IN In ~ hrx
schools as found by deputy state fro
marshals on their tours of inspection.
Among other things he says:
Our deputies have found three
story school buildings not provided
with fire escapes and with narrow
stalrways and inadequate exits they
have found heaps of rubbish and other
infiammable materials In the base
ments and garrets; they have found
many schools that are not provided
with fire extinguishers of any kind,
and many others having extinguisher-
that have not been recharged within
the memory OF man, and the 1anitor
and teachers have but the faintest
idea of their proper use; they nave
found furnace pipes in Easements 30
near the joists and floors that the
woodwork was charred and carbonized
and in a condition to readily ignite;
and they have found many schools in
which no fire drill is practised and
where an alarm of fire would be likely
to result in disorder. demorallzatis A
and probably fatal results"
Suggestions for Schools.
All school buildings should be pro-
vided with metal receptacles for hold
ing accumulations of waste paper and
refuse. in which it may be temporarily
stored instead of allowing 1t to &C
cumulate on basement floors or In
wooden boxes or barrels.
All doors should open outws.d and
these exit doors should never be
locked during school sessions. Chemi-
cal fire extingushers marked For
Fire Only" should be set in conspicu-
Gus places on each floor near the stair
landings and in the Easements. Fire
uTlilS SuCulu uS pidtLAStu az h'~N"~.~
intervals.
School Fire Drills.
Fire drills are aimed not so much at
the fire as at the panic which usually
accompanies 1t. The principal thing
is to prevent the panic. The TWO
points that are to be considered are.
tirst-Order: and, second-Rapidity.
See to II that the fire alarm system
is always in perfect working order.
See that the exit facilities are SUI
ficient and are always unobstructed.
Fire drills should be to the fire es-
capes as we'll as to the exits and
should conclude with a continued
march OF the children out OF and away
from the school building. Il believe"
saws the state fire marshal, that 1t Ia
especially important to hold occasion
ally a fire fighting instruction pro-
gram. There should be short talks by
the teachers on fire prevention and the
evils of carelessness. 1t is important
that these lessons should be as free
es poseible from excitement and
should be addressed TO the common
sense of the pupils rather than to
their IMAGINATION"