Fire Prevention 52: Fall Back on Sound Advice

By Kathy Komatz, Structural Fire Training Specialist

Working smoke alarms significantly increase your chances of surviving a deadly home fire.

Change Your Clock = Change Your Battery

As we “fall back” to standard time each autumn, the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) encourages you to mark the occasion as a time to test your home smoke alarms and replace the batteries.

Every day in the United States, home fire deaths occur. Working smoke alarms significantly increase your chances of surviving a deadly home fire. A properly installed and maintained smoke alarm is the only thing in your home that can alert you and your family to a fire 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Whether you're awake or asleep, a working smoke alarm is constantly on alert scanning the air for fire and smoke.

Here are some more tips on what you can do to prepare:

• Make sure everyone in your home understands the warning of the smoke alarm and knows how to respond.
• Prepare and practice an escape plan so that you and your loved ones can get out of your home safely should there be a fire.
• Plan to meet in a place a safe distance from the fire and where first responders can easily see you.

Fire Info For You

Everyone: For more information on smoke alarms, fire escape planning, and fire prevention, visit the USFA website.

Park Leadership: Ensure that there are working smoke detectors in ALL employee housing and guest lodging. All rooms where people sleep must have working smoke detection.

Take Action

Take a couple of minutes to replace the batteries in your home's smoke detectors. Even smoke detectors that are electric need back-up batteries if power is lost.