Contact: Jim Laird
September is Campus Fire Safety Month in Mississippi, and officials at Mississippi State are using the month-long, statewide effort to raise fire safety awareness at the land-grant institution.
As part of the campaign, the university's Office of Regulatory Compliance and Safety has planned a day of fire safety activities and displays between Colvard Student Union and the YMCA Building Sept. 20.
"Everyone is responsible for preventing fires and knowing how to handle a fire emergency, and we believe that raising awareness and sharing information about how to do that go hand in hand," said ORC&S director Kacey Strickland. "Fire safety day is the perfect time for the Mississippi State community to learn more about what can be done to reduce fire risks and enhance safety."
A highlight of the day will be opportunities for students, faculty and staff to experience a smoke trailer, which simulates a smoke-filled room. In addition, the Starkville Fire Department will be on campus with a fire truck, and there also will be fire extinguisher training sessions.
ORC&S works closely with the MAFES risk management team and the Starkville Fire Department to provide fire prevention and safety resources throughout the year, Strickland added.
According to the Mississippi State Fire Marshal's Office in Jackson, since January 2005 there have been 14 reported campus-based building fires in the state: nine in residence halls or barracks, four in fraternity or sorority houses and one in a non-residential building. There were three on-campus fire-related deaths and an additional death in an off-campus fire involving a full-time student in that time period, the office said.
None of those deaths occurred at Mississippi State, Strickland said.
The most common factors cited by the fire marshal's office in campus-related fatal fires since 2000 are missing or disabled smoke alarms, careless disposal of smoking materials, impaired judgment from alcohol consumption, and lack of automatic fire sprinklers in off-campus housing, where more than 80% of campus-related fires take place.
For additional information about the Sept. 20 fire safety activities, contact Strickland at kstrickland@research.msstate.edu or (662) 325-3294.