This week saw the Telegraph & Argus join forces with the fire service in a unique partnership to increase fire safety awareness. The focus of the new initiative is a new graphic-led display board, sponsored and designed by the T&A, which will become a major tool in the campaign and will spend the next few years 'on tour' at shopping centres and in schools across the district.

Phil Toase, Chief Fire Officer of West Yorkshire, believes the campaign to cut fire-related deaths has the potential to be spectacularly successful. "My target is to have no fire deaths in West Yorkshire which could have been avoided." That, of course, would be quite an achievement, but Mr Toase's confidence stems from the fact that many domestic fires are avoidable.

The key to greater safety lies in common sense. It's common sense to make sure that your house is properly smoke-alarmed and that all of the alarms are in working order. It's common sense to ensure that all of your electrical systems are safe and have been installed by a qualified electrician. Of course, some tragedies cannot be avoided and even after taking the greatest care, fires can break out.

However, some people do not adhere to the basic fire safety rules. Too many of us trust in the 'it will never happen to me' maxim or take too long getting round to implementing these vital fire safety precautions.

The message this week from the fire service is 'act now'. For just a few pounds, and a little time and effort, you can massively reduce the chances of a fire breaking out in your house.

It's a small price to pay for life.

Converted for the new archive on 30 June 2000. Some images and formatting may have been lost in the conversion.