Survival tips that could save your life: by now, you know a crisis can strike anyone at any time. Here's what you need to know to keep your cool and escape an emergency situation. (Life Advice).(Brief Article)

* One night, Kristin, 28, was in her apartment reading when she looked up and saw that her windows were engulfed in flames. "At first, I was so shocked that I felt paralyzed," she remembers. She frantically ran from her apartment to the nearest stairwell, but the door was too hot to open. The door at the second stairwell felt cooler but opened up to suffocatingly thick black smoke. "I was absolutely terrified," says Kristin. "How the hell am I going to live through this? I asked myself over and over." Luckily, she remembered that there was another, rarely used staircase down the hall, and she was able to get out.

Knowing all the possible escape routes in advance saved Kristin's life. Here's how to prepare for--and pull through--all kinds of potentially lethal predicaments.

you're trapped in a fire

* Always check a closed door for heat; if it's hot, do not open it, warns Margie Coloian of the National Fire Protection Association. Stuff clothes under the door to keep smoke out, and call 911.

* Being surrounded by a cloud of smoke is blinding. Practice an escape route with your eyes closed (on your hands and knees, since heat and smoke rise) so you'll be able to feel your way out in a fire.

* If you are caught in a fire at home or in a hotel, put a wet towel over your mouth and then crawl through the smoke to the closest exit.

* Invest in dry-chemical, ABC-rated fire extinguishers. Keep one on each floor and one near an exit.