We usually consider our homes the safest place on Earth. They are built to keep us safe from the outside world and shelter us from the bad weather. But what if the danger comes from the inside of the house or flat?
No matter how hard we try to make our homes as safe as possible, accidents happen. It could be something minor like a broken glass that can be cleaned up easily, or something more serious than we'd all want to prevent. Some accidents can't be avoided and the best we can do is learn how to deal with them. Here's a list of the most common accidents and how to deal with them.
Cuts
We spend a good portion of our time in the kitchen. Whether it's just for a quick snack, five-course meal, or meal preparation, we use silverware such as sharp knives at every step. Cutting fruit and vegetables has become automatised for most of us, so we don't pay much attention to the way we're holding a knife. That's when accidents happen and they usually lead to minor cuts.
The easiest way of prevention is keeping your knives sharp. Dull knives can slip out easily. Also, always use them at a cutting board, and never carry them around the kitchen. However, we can't always prevent accidents. Cutting your finger most likely has blood involved, so it's essential to know how to treat a cut. To stop the bleeding, apply pressure and antiseptic to that area. If the bleeding doesn't stop, rush to the closest emergency.
Fire safety and burns
Besides cuts, fire-related accidents are most likely to happen in the kitchen. Everyone can make a mistake of leaving heated oil on the burner, but not everyone is lucky enough to get away without consequences. In addition to that, always keep an eye on the water heater so you don't get scalded while washing hands or showering.
Fire is definitely the worst-case scenario. But before we get to the step of action during fire drill we should take a few steps of precaution. These include keeping the water heater below 120 degrees, turning off our stove and burner once we've finished cooking, never leaving our cooking lunch unattended, etc.
Plumbing accidents
Plumbing accidents are one of the worst nightmares of a house owner. Bursting pipes, leaking toilets, or damaged water heaters are annoying and hard to deal with on your own. When there’s a true emergency, you don’t want to play around trying to fix it yourself.
It doesn’t matter what type of accident happened, you should contact professionals. There are emergency plumbing services that have professionals on standby, always ready to diagnose, fix, and replace broken equipment in your home. So don’t let fixable problems get on your nerves. To prevent damage to your home, make sure the water and the heater are shut off, mop up standing water and remove carpets from the room if there are any. Also, try tackling smaller leaks until the help arrives.
Falling objects, trips and falls
Tripping over shoes, carpets, toys, or even a doorstep can be a daily “activity” for some people. Even though people of all ages are prone to falling, youngsters and the elderly are at high risk of serious injuries, concussions, broken bones, and in worst-case scenarios, death. In addition to that, kids that have just learned how to walk are in danger of falling objects. Those little curios bugs creep around the house pulling everything that comes into their hands. This could lead to serious head injury and trauma.
Instead of dealing with the consequences, the first step is trying to prevent these things from happening. You should keep your floors clean at all times, ask your kids to clean up their toys, put away the shoes, and remove all the unnecessary objects from the floor. You should also consider installing grab bars in the shower and putting a rubber mat to reduce slipping. Supervise your youngsters when they are running around and remove the dangerous objects out of reach.
Conclusion
Even though most accidents can’t be prevented, it’s important to learn how to deal with them. It can be hard, but staying levelheaded in emergencies is essential. Firstly take care of your loved ones, then worry about any damage made to the property.
