Every second counts when you are trying to escape a fire. Develop and practice a home fire escape plan with everyone in your household.

On this page:

  1. Create a fire escape plan
  2. Smoke alarms
  3. Apartment buildings

Create a fire escape plan

Follow these steps to create a fire escape plan for your home. Practice it with your family so that everyone is prepared if there is an emergency.

Remember that in a real fire, you must react without hesitation as your escape routes may be quickly blocked by smoke or flames.

  1. Draw a floor plan of your home
    • download our printable grid or use graph paper
    • include every floor of your home
  2. Include all possible exits
    • draw in all the doors, windows and stairways
    • include anything that would help your escape, like the roof of a garage or porch
  3. Show two ways out of every room, if possible
    • the door will be the main exit from each room
    • if the door is blocked by smoke or fire, you’ll need another escape route, which could be a window
    • make sure all windows can open easily and that everyone knows how to escape through them quickly
    • if your windows have security bars, add quick-releasing devices
  4. Decide in advance who will help children, older adults, people with disabilities and pets escape
  5. Choose a meeting place outside
    • choose a meeting place a safe distance from your home that everyone will remember
    • a tree, streetlight or a neighbour’s home are all good choices
  6. Call the fire department from outside your home
    • don’t waste time calling the fire department from inside your home
    • once you have safely escaped, call 911 from a cell phone or a neighbour’s phone
  7. Practice your escape
    • review the plan with everyone in your household
    • walk through the escape routes for each room with the entire family
    • check your escape routes to make sure all exits are practical and easy to use
    • hold a fire drill twice a year and time how long it takes

Smoke alarms

Install smoke alarms on every floor of your home and outside all sleeping areas. Consider installing our Direct Detect system to protect your family from fire, smoke and carbon monoxide poisoning.

Apartment buildings

If you live in a high-rise apartment building, contact the building management for information on what to do if there is a fire in your building.