Fire Prevention Week Open Houses

In an effort to prevent home fires before they start, the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department will host Fire Prevention Week Open House, Saturday, October 15, 2011, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. at all stations throughout the county. The theme for Fire Prevention Week is, “It’s Fire Prevention Week. Protect Your Family From Fire!”

The stations in Burke and Springfield are:

Fairfax County Fire Station 14

9501 Old Burke Lake Road, Burke, VA 22015-3129

See your station, your equipment, and your firefighters. Activities for all ages. Food, fun, music, and more.

Greater Springfield Volunteer Fire Department

Fairfax County Fire Station 22

7011 Backlick Road, Springfield, VA 22150-3102

Pancake Breakfast and Open House

Breakfast is $5 per person.   Open House is free.

Edsall Road Fire Station

Fairfax County Fire Station 26

5316 Carolina Place, Springfield, VA 22151-4401

Fairfax County Fire Station 32

5600 Burke Centre Pkwy, Fairfax Station, VA 22039

Pohick Fire Station

Fairfax County Fire Station 35

7801 Maritime Lane, Springfield, VA 22153-2170

According to the U.S. Fire Administration, nearly 3,000 people die in home fires each year. About two-thirds of home fire deaths resulted from fires in homes with no smoke alarms or no working alarms. In 23 percent of home fire deaths, smoke alarms were present but did not sound. Bedrooms (55%) are the leading location where fire fatalities occur in residential buildings. Seventy percent of fire victims in residential buildings were escaping or sleeping at the time of their deaths. Smoking was the leading cause of fatal fatalities in residential buildings.

Fire Prevention Week was established to commemorate the Great Chicago Fire, the tragic 1871 conflagration that killed more than 250 people, left 100,000 homeless, destroyed more than 17,400 structures, and burned more than 2,000 acres.

For 90 years, Fire Prevention Week has been sponsored by the National Fire Prevention Association and is proclaimed by the President of the United States each year. This is the longest running safety commemoration and is the premier fire safety program of the fire service, drawing the participation of the Fairfax County Fire and Rescue Department and other fire departments in the U.S. and Canada.