You and your child have made it to one of those “milestones” of life: they’re heading off to college to “spread their wings” and continue their journey to adulthood.  You’ve done all that you could to keep them safe from harm from fires while under your roof, but have they been sufficiently “inoculated” against the “disease” itself—fire, that is—as they head out on their own for the first time.

The statistics are sobering to say the least: the number of fires in student housing—dormitories, fraternity houses, off-campus apartments, etc.—has risen 45 percent from 1998 to 2005.  In the first half of this decade—from 2000 to 2005—39 students have lost their lives in student housing fires and another 400 have been injured.

Why the increase?  A large percentage of student housing on and off campus across the USA is old and getting older.  On-campus dormitories may have complied with the fire safety codes in the era of their construction, but are not required to meet today’s more stringent standards, e.g., having fire sprinklers installed.  While fire sprinklers have been in use in the U.S. since 1874, our society has been historically been reluctant to require retrofitting of buildings to comply with updated fire safety codes.  It doesn’t matter that fire sprinklers have a long and distinguished history of preventing deaths and property damage from fire, are reliable, and are “on-duty” in the building 24/7/365.

Also, many of these older buildings—which include off-campus apartments, rooming houses, and fraternity and sorority houses—do not have electrical systems capable of handling all of the electronic gear and gadgets that students bring with them to college these days.  Computers and computer peripherals; HDTV and video gaming equipment; refrigerators, hot plates, microwave ovens, and more all put a tremendous draw on electrical systems that were designed to comply with electrical codes of the 1970’s and 1980’s.

Keep your child safe as they head off to college this fall.  Ask questions of campus officials when moving your child into student housing and encourage you new college student to ask questions about fire safety during new student orientation.  This message is important, so don’t forget your returning scholars: fire doesn’t care if you’re a freshman or a senior or a grad student.  This is especially important for those returning students who are moving into fraternity or sorority houses or an off-campus apartment.  Encourage your returning student to use the fire safety checklist to assist them with ensuring that their new home is as fire safe as the one they left.

Fire safety is a personal responsibility.   Don’t let your child leave home without it.