Repsol YPF

The Civil Protection Services of councils and local corporations publish clear and informative documents on preventing domestic risks and avoiding accidents at home. Particular care must be taken with the gas and electricity installations, as well as domestic gas appliances and electrical appliances; with slippery surfaces; with height; with the use of cutting tools and toxic products. 

You must check that gas appliances are turned off before going to bed and protect plug sockets with specifically designed devices if you have children. Children must be taught not to play with plug sockets or gas appliances as soon as they are able to reason. 

It is essential to regularly service the gas installation and maintain boilers, burners and connection pipes in good condition.  If you have heaters, make sure that they are not next to curtains and do not hang clothes close to them. 

Falling  and slipping over

Accidental falls are a common cause of accidents in the home, especially if elderly people live there, as they often have difficulty walking and can slip, especially in the bathroom or in the kitchen, where there may be slippery floors. If you live with elderly people, free the floor of obstacles and introduce rubber mats and handrails in the bathroom. Make sure that they do not use chairs or tables to reach objects that are stored in high places. It is better that they do not attempt to reach them and let a younger person do it, always using a ladder. 

Falls at home can also affect children, who due to their imprudence and ignorance of danger, can slip in the bath or lose their balance when playing on their bed or on an armchair. In order to prevent domestic accidents involving children, you should lock doors leading to balconies as well as windows. It is sensible to protect these areas with bars, banisters or lattice frames and free the area of items (boxes, window boxes...) which they can climb on. In any case, you should never allow children to play unsupervised on a balcony or roof terrace. 

Cuts, wounds and burns

Another type of accident which occurs in the home is burns, cuts and wounds. Where the former are concerned, they are usually caused by overheating oil in the kitchen, the iron or hot water. In order to avoid accidents, you should place cooking utensils carefully on the hob, making sure that handles face inwards. The iron should always be placed on an even surface, making sure that the wire does not get caught up or block the way. Children should not use the hot tap or touch the water when it comes out at a high temperature. 

Some domestic accidents occur due to misuse of cutting utensils. Be careful with knives, scissors, razor blades and other tools with a cutting edge and make sure children cannot reach them. 

Poisoning  

Cleaning products and toiletries, insecticides and gardening products, paints and solvents, alcoholic drinks, food that has gone off and medicines are the main causes of poisoning in the home. It is essential that you check that food has not gone off and look at the best before date, as well as washing your hands after using products which contain toxic substances. 

Likewise, you should keep all products which should not be consumed in a place that children can not get at, and when you need to use them, you should always follow the manufacturer’s instructions. In the event of poisoning, we recommend that you contact the Health Department in your area or the Spanish National Toxicology Institute, Tel: 915 620 420. 

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