Every October the National Fire Protection Association and Sycamore Fire Department observe Fire Prevention Week. Throughout the month, Firefighters from the Sycamore Fire Department visit local grade schools and other places in the community teaching fire safety and prevention. This Year’s theme is “Working Smoke Alarms Save Lives, Test Yours Every Month!””
Here’s a little history about fire prevention week. Fire Prevention Week was established to commemorate the Great Chicago Fire, the tragic 1871 conflagration that killed more than 250 people, left 100,000 homeless, destroyed more than 17,400 structures and burned more than 2,000 acres. In 1920, President Woodrow Wilson issued the first National Fire Prevention Day proclamation, and since 1922, Fire Prevention Week has been observed on the Sunday through Saturday period in which October 9 falls.
Working smoke alarms can make a life-saving difference in a fire. That’s the message behind this year’s Fire Prevention Week campaign, “Working Smoke Alarms Save Lives: Test Yours Every Month!”
Along with firefighters and safety advocates nationwide, The Sycamore Fire Department is joining forces with the nonprofit National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) during Fire Prevention Week, October 5-11, to remind local residents about the importance of having working smoke alarms in the home and testing them monthly.
According to the latest NFPA research, working smoke alarms cut the chance of dying in a fire in half. Meanwhile, almost two-thirds of home fire deaths resulted from fires in homes with no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms.
“In a fire, seconds count,” said Assistant Fire Chief Art Zern. “Roughly half of home fire deaths result from fires reported at night between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. when most people are asleep. Home smoke alarms can alert people to a fire before it spreads, giving everyone enough time to get out.”
This year’s Fire Prevention Week campaign includes the following smoke alarm messages:
Install smoke alarms in every bedroom, outside each separate sleeping area and on every level of the home, including the basement.
Interconnect all smoke alarms throughout the home. This way, when one sounds, they all do.
Test alarms at least monthly by pushing the test button.
Replace all smoke alarms when they are 10 years old or sooner if they don’t respond properly.
Make sure everyone in the home knows the sound of the smoke alarm and understands what to do when they hear it.
To learn more about smoke alarms and “Working Smoke Alarms Saves Lives”, visit NFPA’s Web site at www.firepreventionweek.org.
For more information on this topic, please contact James Ward, Public Education Coordinator, Sycamore Fire Department at 815-895-4514.
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