It may take as little as four minutes for a fire to engulf a room within a home. Correctly located smoke alarms in your house will give early warning of fire, providing you with the precious time needed to save your life.

In South Australia, every home is required by law to have working smoke alarms. The MFS recommends that you buy smoke alarms which comply with Australian Standard 3786. Look for 'AS 3786' and/or the Standards Australia 'five ticks' symbol on the packaging.

We recommend that the best protection across a range of situations is provided by photo-electric smoke alarms which are hard-wired to the 240 volt power supply, with battery backup, and are interconnected to give the earliest warning possible.

Smoke alarms are available from department stores, hardware stores and specialist fire safety stores.

When you sleep you have no sense of smell, meaning you will not wake up if there is smoke in your home. Most fire-related deaths result from the inhalation of smoke rather than from direct contact with the fire or exposure to heat. That’s why it’s so important you have working smoke alarms installed in your home.

For more information on smoke alarm maintenance, installation (including for rental properties), location in the home and devices for impaired people, view our Smoke Alarms Fact Sheet.

For more information on smoke alarm Legislation view our Smoke Alarms Legislation Fact Sheet.

For more information on smoke alarm disposal view our Smoke Alarm Disposal Fact Sheet.

Using a fire blanket correctly is one of the safest ways to extinguish a fire burning in a container, such as oil or fat burning in a saucepan.

Fire blankets are available from department stores, hardware stores and specialist fire safety stores.

When you purchase a fire blanket ensure it meets the Australian Standard: AS/NZS 3504:2006.

We recommend mounting the fire blanket on the wall near or very close to a door leading out of the kitchen area. Do not place the fire blanket beside the oven or stove top as you may not be able reach it if there is a fire.

For more information on cooking fire safety, please watch our Cooking fire safety video.

For more information on fire blankets and how to use them correctly view our Fire Blankets Fact Sheet.

For more information on fire blanket disposal view our Fire Safety Equipment Disposal Fact Sheet.

There are a number of fire extinguishers available to suit different types of fires in the home. There is no single fire extinguisher or extinguishment method which will cover all types of fires.

A fire extinguisher should only be used on a small fire (no larger than a waste paper basket / bucket) by someone who is confident and physically capable of using the extinguisher. If a fire frightens you do not attempt to extinguish it, evacuate the building immediately and phone Triple Zero (000).

You should never put your life at risk when attempting to extinguish a fire. If the fire is bigger than a waste paper basket / bucket and spreading beyond where it started or is taking longer than 30 seconds to extinguish we advise you to exit your home immediately and call Triple Zero (000).

For more information on the types of fire extinguishers and how to use them correctly view our Fire Extinguisher Fact Sheet.

For more information on how to extinguish a fire using a fire extinguisher view our Extinguishing a Fire Fact Sheet.

For more information on fire extinguisher disposal view our Fire Safety Equipment Disposal Fact Sheet.