Fire safety at home
Get out, ring 911, and never open a door whose handle is hot. Everything else is what you do in the weeks before.
Written for the Philippines. In an emergency here, the number is 911.
Eleven of the twenty steps on this page are about stopping a fire rather than surviving one, which is roughly the ratio in the source. A house fire moves faster than most people expect, and the window in which a decision helps is measured in seconds.
How to avoid a fire
Eleven habits. None of them costs anything.
- Keep flammable items away from anything that could set them off.
- Store flammable liquids outside the house. Gas, cleaning agents and anything similar.
- Check the LPG tank for leaks, and keep it somewhere well ventilated. Gas vapour needs somewhere to go rather than somewhere to gather.
- Keep candles, lighters and matches out of reach of children.
- Never leave the house with a candle lit.
- Never leave the stove while you are cooking.
- Unplug electronics when they are not in use.
- Inspect sockets and cables at home regularly.
- Do not smoke indoors. If that is not possible, make sure the cigarette is out before it goes in the bin.
- Do not overload sockets and extension cords.
- Agree a fire escape plan and walk the family through it.
Source: Quezon City DRRMO, Fire Safety Tips (last updated 13 May 2026). Read 20 September 2026. A city-government guide. The household steps apply anywhere in the country; the 122 helpline is Quezon City’s own, so use 911 or your own LGU number elsewhere.
If a fire starts
The first thirty seconds decide the rest of it.
- Stay calm and get out immediately.
- Sound the alarm and ring for help.
- In a building, take the stairs. Never the lift.
- Feel the handle before you open a door. If it is hot, leave it shut. The room behind it may already be alight.
- In smoke, get down low and cover your mouth and nose with a damp cloth.
- If your clothes catch fire: stop, drop and roll. Stop running, drop to the floor, and roll to put the flames out.
- If you are trapped, stay in the room and signal. A bright cloth at the window, or noise.
- Afterwards, stay out until the authorities say the building is safe.
- Get yourself checked for injuries.
Source: Quezon City DRRMO, Fire Safety Tips (last updated 13 May 2026). Read 20 September 2026. A city-government guide. The household steps apply anywhere in the country; the 122 helpline is Quezon City’s own, so use 911 or your own LGU number elsewhere.
Who to ring
Ring 911. It reaches fire response anywhere in the country, and it is the number to use when the house is the thing that is burning.
The Bureau of Fire Protection also publishes its own lines, (02) 8426-0219 and (02) 8426-0246, which are the ones for everything that is not the emergency itself: inspection questions, certificates, and reporting a hazard.
Source: PH Emergency Hotlines, the Philippine government hotline directory. Read 20 September 2026.
