Carbon Monoxide Awareness this Bonfire Night
Bonfire night is finally here! As one of the most exciting nights of the year we are all anticipating the magical spectacle of fireworks being released into the night sky, not to mention the delicious savoury winter foods on offer at local markets. However in spite of the joy and excitement that bonfire night brings, it is also important to remember that neglecting your safety could result in serious and tragic consequences. So we here at Fitting a Cooker urge our customers to keep safe this bonfire night by following these tips which were published on the official Kent council website. These tips include:
- Lighting the firework at arm’s length with a taper and standing well back.
- Keeping naked flames, including cigarettes, away from fireworks.
- Never returning to a firework once it has been lit.
- Not putting fireworks in the pockets of clothing and never throwing them.
- Directing any rocket fireworks well away from spectators
Just as we advise our customers to ensure that they follow these recommendations, the aspect of safety precaution must be attributed to numerous practices and appliances. One example of domestic safety that Fitting a Cooker are constantly campaigning for is Gas Safety awareness. Carbon monoxide is one of the biggest domestic killers in the UK, taking over 50 lives a year. Carbon monoxide poisoning is a very real and very tragic means of death which can be prevented if the homeowner ensures that they are diligent when it comes to Gas Safety.
Notably carbon monoxide is often dubbed as ‘the silent killer-’ a very apt name as the gas is colourless, tasteless and invisible to the naked eye. Not only is the invisible nature of this gas threatening but its non-specific symptoms such as headaches and drowsiness can also be related to the flu making it difficult to diagnose. One way in which Gas Safety can be ensured is through the use of a carbon monoxide alarm these alarms detect whether CO is present in the area and sound an alarm to alert homeowners of the toxic gas.
Here at Fitting a Cooker we have a range of quality and affordable carbon monoxide alarms and our qualified engineers are able to install the device for you.