Knowing that today's homes burn faster than ever, the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) announced “Every Second Counts: Plan Two Ways Out” as the official theme for this year's Fire Prevention Week campaign, October 8-14, 2017.

2 minutes to escape

Experts say you may have as little as two minutes (or even less) to safely escape a typical home fire from the time the smoke alarm sounds.

“Modern home furnishings, along with the fact that newer homes tend to be built with more open spaces and unprotected lightweight construction, all contribute to an increased rate at which home fires burn,” said Lorraine Carli, vice president of Outreach and Advocacy at NFPA. “These factors make home escape planning and practice critical.”

Common misperceptions

Meanwhile, a national survey recently conducted by NFPA shows that Americans continue to have many misperceptions around home escape planning and practice:

• Less than half of Americans (48%) know that the correct components of a home fire escape plan include working smoke alarms, two ways out of each room and an outside meeting place.
• Nearly one quarter of Americans (23%) do not know that each room in the home should have at least two exits.
• Close to three in five Americans (57%) think that in a typical single-family home fire situation, once the smoke alarm sounds, the average person would have more than two minutes to escape safely.

“Home is the place people are at greatest risk of fire, but ironically it's the place they feel safest from it,” said Carli. “That over-confidence may contribute to the public's continued lack of awareness around home escape planning and practice.”

Related: 25 U.S. cities with the highest risk of home fires