Recently, with the weather turning colder, seasonal factors contributing to fires are becoming more prominent. As temperatures plummet, the increased use of heating appliances and electricity leads to a rise in unstable factors that can easily trigger fires. Beijing is implementing a series of effective measures to ensure fire prevention and control.

As the weather in Beijing turns colder, areas not covered by municipal heating, such as older residential areas, rural areas, hutong areas, urban-rural fringe areas, areas with a high concentration of migrant workers, business premises, and temporary construction site dormitories, commonly use coal, electricity, and gas for heating. Fires are often caused by factors such as substandard heating equipment, illegal wiring, violations of equipment safety instructions, and improper use of fire and gas. This is further compounded by a lack of self-rescue knowledge among residents, limited mobility among elderly, infirm, and disabled individuals, and the absence of independent alarm systems in many homes. Therefore, districts, regions, and departments are prioritizing the prevention of 'small fires resulting in fatalities' as a key aspect of winter fire prevention and control. They are closely aligning their efforts with the characteristics of winter fires and the realities of fire safety work, comprehensively analyzing and assessing the fire safety situation, identifying the causes, locations, and populations vulnerable to 'small fires resulting in fatalities', and developing corresponding human, physical, and technical prevention measures to strengthen the fire prevention and control system and maintain social fire safety.

Implementing multiple measures for prevention and refined control measures

Leveraging the advantages of community-based fire safety prevention and control, utilizing the integrated governance platform and the grid-based fire safety management system, mobilizing community management personnel, building managers, volunteers, and patrol members to conduct fire prevention patrols and household fire safety inspections in communities and rural areas, guiding the elimination of fire hazards, reminding residents of safe use of fire, electricity, and gas, and promoting fire prevention and extinguishing knowledge.

Conducting fire safety training for police officers in public security stations, focusing on key points of winter fire prevention and control, guiding increased fire supervision and inspection in residential areas, rural areas, and urban-rural fringe areas, urging community (village) committees, grassroots management organizations, and property management service enterprises to fulfill their fire safety management responsibilities, strengthening the maintenance and inspection of fire facilities in public areas, and promptly eliminating hazards.

Establishing classified records of vulnerable groups in the jurisdiction, fully considering the number, self-care ability, cultural level, living conditions, and lifestyle characteristics of these groups, rationally allocating management and service resources, establishing a neighborhood assistance mechanism, guiding volunteers to form partnerships with vulnerable groups, and regularly visiting them to provide safety tips, hazard inspections, and educational outreach. Encouraging residents to promptly clear indoor, balcony, and corridor clutter and to conduct safety checks on household appliances, heating equipment, and gas appliances.

In line with fire prevention and control practices, encouraging and guiding the expansion of the application scope of independent smoke detectors. In addition to buildings already required to have automatic fire alarm systems, independent smoke detectors are recommended for elderly care facilities, welfare institutions, disability service organizations, institutions providing support for the needy, kindergartens, homes of the elderly, disabled, and children, homes of the elderly living independently, "empty nest elderly," and needy individuals living independently, community comprehensive service facilities, old residential buildings in shantytowns, urban-rural fringe areas, traditional cultural villages, and those with a fire resistance rating of level three or below, dormitories, rental housing, farm stays, small hotels, and underground living spaces, which are prone to fatal fires; the installation of independent smoke detectors in other residential buildings is also encouraged. Existing volunteer (duty) fire teams should be leveraged, equipped with appropriate vehicles and equipment, and established as "small, fast, and flexible" micro fire stations to strengthen the emergency response to initial fires.

Deepening thematic publicity activities and strengthening knowledge dissemination among key groups

Developing easily accessible, easy-to-understand, and popular "personalized" publicity materials, relying on local party committees and governments, mobilizing residents' (village) committees, police stations, and grid forces, using door-to-door publicity, face-to-face explanations and reminders, and hands-on training and guidance to conduct impactful, practical, and targeted publicity and training, disseminating fire safety knowledge that matches their needs; guiding community (village) committees and property management service enterprises to focus on grassroots audiences and their concerns, conducting community-wide publicity campaigns, and fostering a strong atmosphere of "going door-to-door to ensure fire safety"; organizing kindergartens and primary and secondary schools to conduct activities such as "Little Hands Pulling Big Hands," "Fire Safety Homework," fire extinguishing and evacuation drills, and fire safety skills training.