Massive Mistake Puts New York Residents At Risk

Odds are, you have been guilty of making this mistake, but don’t be too hard on yourself: most residents in New York have done the same thing. 

In fact, some people don’t even have one of these in their house, which would be mistake #1. 

There are a few things you need when you get a new place that are often overlooked, including a plunger, flashlights, first aid kit, and of course – a fire extinguisher. 

A fire extinguisher is one of the most important things you can have in your house, but not everyone owns one. According to a 2020 survey conducted by The Zebra, approximately 70% of Americans own or have access to a fire extinguisher at home. That means that just over ¼ of Americans do not have a fire extinguisher in their homes, and approximately 10% of people who have one somewhere in their home don’t even know where it’s at! 

So yes, you definitely are better off with a fire extinguisher in your house, but it can be pretty useless during an emergency situation if you don’t test your fire extinguisher over time. 

Dave Cash, the Local Traffic Tracker with WGRZ, shared the details of a scary incident with a failed fire extinguisher. 

“My neighbor…came over & was frantically pounding on my door tonight - she asked if I had a fire extinguisher. I told her I did, but I bought it in 1991 when I bought my home. I was guessing it might not work, and I was right,” he wrote. 

While most fire extinguishers don’t have a listed expiration date, traditional fire extinguishers are said to have about a 10-12 year life expectancy, according to First Alert. Experts suggest replacing your fire extinguisher every 10 years, just to make sure it is fully functional if you ever need it. 

Cash’s neighbor was using the self-clean function on her oven when the oven started on fire, but thankfully first responders arrived to extinguish the fire. 

“Thank God for The Amherst Police Department - NY, The Getzville Volunteer Fire Department, and the EMTs who were here in full force in minutes My neighbor & her son, her boyfriend, and their two doggies are all ok thankfully. The firefighters cleared the smoke from the house and the EMTs checked everyone to make sure they weren’t suffering from effects of smoke inhalation,” Cash wrote. 

Dave Cash also gave kudos to the first responders who helped his neighbor, saying that approximately “65% of the firefighters in the U.S. are VOLUNTEERS!”

Volunteer firemen and firewomen risk their lives to save ours with nothing expected in return, and we thank them for their service. 

Don’t risk it: if you have a fire extinguisher, make sure it is up to date – and if you don’t have one, then you should definitely invest in one!