Recognizing Fire Prevention Week in Ontario

October 8, 2019

Fire Prevention Week runs from October 6th to October 12th. This week is an opportunity for all of us to learn and remind ourselves of the essentials of fire prevention in our homes and communities, as well as the small but important actions you can take to keep yourself and those around you safe.

The theme for this year’s Fire Prevention Week in Ontario is “Not Every Hero Wears a Cape. Plan and Practice Your Escape.” If there is a fire in your home, you may have as little as one or two minutes to escape safely. Planning and practicing that escape can help you make the most of the time you have and giving everyone enough time to get out. I want to encourage everyone in Dufferin-Caledon to develop and practice an escape plan. Ontario’s Office of the Fire Marshal and Emergency Management has a number of tips for you to help improve fire safety, including:

  • Install smoke alarms on every storey of your home and outside all sleeping areas.
  • Test smoke alarms every month.
  • Include a safe meeting place in your home escape plan and ensure everyone in the home knows exactly what to do in an emergency.

Dedicated firefighters across the province strive every day to keep people safe. During this year’s Fire Prevention Week, I was honoured to attend the Ontario Firefighters’ Memorial Service held at Queen’s Park. The Firefighters’ Memorial Service is an opportunity to pay tribute and remember firefighters who have died in the line of duty. The service recognizes the ultimate sacrifice they made and reminded us all of their bravery, dedication and commitment while working to keep communities across Ontario safe.

Ensuring the safety and security of people is one of the most fundamental responsibility of government. That is why, since taking office, our government has taken action to improve fire safety across Ontario. Ensuring that modern and robust fire safety rules are in place that helps to protect the lives of firefighters on the job and all Ontarians.

We are also providing fire services with more enforcement options to help keep the communities they protect safe. Some of these actions include; increasing the maximum fines for most offences and higher fines for subsequent offences; and extending the time for fire departments to initiate prosecutions to one year after they become aware of an offence. We have also lifted exemptions under the Fire Code for low occupancy farm buildings where hazardous extraction is used for cannabis processing.

Ontario has strong fire protection rules to keep buildings, people, and communities safe. To learn more about how our government is enhancing Fire Code regulations and supporting firefighters across our province, visit www.sylviajonesmpp.ca or call my office at 1-800-265-1603.

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