Oct. 3-9 is Fire Prevention Week.
Firefighters across North America will be out in the community, educating children and adults on preventing and escaping fires.
This year’s campaign theme is Smoke Alarms: A Sound You Can Live With, and local fire departments will be putting special emphasis on the importance of having well-maintained, modern alarms on every level of the house.
This issue is especially important to those in the fire service, because the high-pitched sound of a fire alarm may be annoying, but it can save your life.
Smoke alarms cut your chance of dying in a fire in half, yet data from the Alberta Emergency Management Agency shows many homes in the province have smoke alarms that aren’t operational. What’s worse is that many times homeowners disconnect their alarms or neglect to change the batteries, rendering the safety devices useless. It’s foolish when you consider how many lives can be saved by putting up with the annoying beep when you burn your toast and take the time to check your alarm.
Experts agree that smoke alarms should be tested monthly, replaced every 10 years, and contain both batteries and be hardwired into the electrical system. It is best if they contain both ionization and photo electronic smoke detection capabilities.
Working smoke alarms will beep when smoke is present or when the test button is pressed. Openings should be tested for clogging, and electronic components should be able to sense smoke and sound the alarm.
Early warning gives the greatest chance escaping a fire and preventing death. Every year in Alberta, an average of 5,890 fires are reported to the Fire Commissioner. On average there are 32 deaths and 317 injuries. Most of these deaths and injuries occurred in home fires.
