At-home counselling on fire safety

The Estonian Rescue Board wishes to help people make their homes more fireproof and thus reduce the number of fires in residential buildings.

The purpose of the at-home counselling is to check the fire safety situation in the home together with the owner and give advice to people.

For this purpose, volunteers and professional rescuers will visit people’s homes. Rescuers may appear at anyone’s door, but close cooperation is being made with local authorities and other partners to reach at least the people most in need of help. It also does not hurt if you yourself notify the state helpline 1247 or the local government of a home in need of help. Certainly, no obvious danger signs – drinking and smoking in the room, broken heating elements, lack of electricity or smoke detector – should be ignored. By notifying of the danger, you show that you care about yourself and your community.

The Estonian Rescue Board provides counselling on fire safety and helps to identify the hazards, but the ultimate responsibility for the safety of the home remains with the person themselves. The purpose of counselling is not to check on or penalise a person.

Rescuers performing at-home counselling wear clothing with the insignia of the Estonian Rescue Board and provide a certificate of employment with the hologram of the Estonian Rescue Board. A person has the opportunity to check the people performing at-home counselling on the basis of the number of the certificate of employment by calling the number 1247. As a rule, at-home fire safety counselling is carried out with the red rescue vehicles of the Estonian Rescue Board during the day from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Counselling usually lasts 20 to 30 minutes. Counselling is provided throughout the year, more during the cold period and less during the summer period.

During the at-home counselling, we:

• review the safety outside the home (campfire sites, barbecues, ponds, wells, garbage storage, access to operational vehicles, dangerous trees, etc.)
• review the condition of the heating elements;
• check for the presence, location, and operational status of the smoke detector;
• review the safe use of electrical equipment;
• review the use of open fire (candles, cooking, access of children to matches, etc.);
• assess the behavioural habits of people that can create danger (smoking, maintenance and safe use of heating elements, etc.);
• if necessary, draw attention to other hazards (water bodies around the house, escape routes, behaviour in case of fire, the presence of basic fire extinguishing equipment, etc.)