1/6/12 New Year's good time to check smoke detectors
By Nick Sabo
January 6, 2012
312
SUMMARY: Can't afford one? Call your local fire department
Holmes Fire District #1 Chief Scott Balder said the new year is the perfect time to check or install smoke detectors.
Theres no reason not to have a smoke detector, Balder said. If you cant afford it, just call your local fire department and theyll get you one.
According to information provided by the Ohio Fire Marshals office, 184 people died in fires in Ohio in 2008, the latest statistics available. In the fatal fires, only 19 percent of homes had working smoke detectors.
The importance of having working smoke detectors in the home was stressed in a Jan. 3 fire that killed a Coshocton County man. Inspectors found a smoke detector in the debris of the home, but it did not have batteries installed.
Getting working smoke detectors into everyones home is a priority for Fire District #1, Balder said. District #1 will provide free smoke detectors to eligible households within its coverage area of Millersburg, Hardy, Monroe and Mechanic townships. Residents in other townships should contact their local fire departments for availability.
If were out on a squad call, we will ask if they have a smoke detector in the home, Balder said. If they say no, we say OK, well be back tomorrow with one. If the emergency is not serious, well check their smoke detectors to see if they are operating.
The Division of State Fire Marshal and the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) are promot- ing the Install.Inspect.Protect. Campaign, which emphasizes its slogan of Smoke Alarms Save Lives.
The mission of this campaign is to encourage Americans to practice fire safety by installing and maintaining smoke alarms, which can help save the lives of residents and firefighters, practicing fire escape plans, and performing a home safety walk-through to remove fire hazards from the home.
More than 3,000 people die from fire-related deaths every year. According to the National Fire Protection Association, between 2003-2006, almost two-thirds of home fire deaths resulted from fires in homes with no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms.
During the same time period, no smoke alarms were present in 40 percent of the home fire deaths and in 23 percent of the home fire deaths, smoke alarms were present but did not sound.
When both smoke alarms and fire sprinklers are present in a home, the risk of dying in a fire is reduced by 82 percent, when compared to a residence without either, according the fire marshals office.
The fire marshals office recommends the following for installing and maintaining smoke detectors:
Place properly installed and maintained smoke alarms both inside and outside of sleeping areas and on every level of your home.
Interconnected smoke alarms are best, because if one sounds, they all sound.
Get smoke alarms that can sound fast. The U.S. Fire Administration recommends that every residence and place where people sleep be equipped with both ionization and photoelectric smoke alarms or dual sensor smoke alarms, which contain both ionization and photoelectric smoke sensors.
Testing smoke alarms monthly and changing alkaline batteries at least once every year, or as instructed.You can use a date you already know, like your birthday or when you change your clocks as a reminder.
Consider buying a long-life (lithium) battery-powered smoke alarm, which may last up to ten years with no battery change. If a smoke alarm sounds during normal cooking or when bathing, press the hush button if the smoke alarm has one. Open the door or window or fan the area with a towel to get the air moving.
Do not disable the smoke alarm or take out the batteries. If this happens often, the smoke alarm will need to be relocated.
