As the fall time change approaches American Red Cross and the Sheridan Fire Department wants to remind residents to make another change that could save their lives - changing the batteries in their smoke alarms.
Saturday, November is “change your clock, change your battery” day and on that day it is recommended that everyone put a new battery in their smoke detector. The Red Cross and Sheridan Fire Department will be coordinating visits to homes of seniors and others who need help changing the battery in their smoke detector. Also, anyone who does not have a smoke detector in their home, the American Red Cross will provide a detector and a Firefighter will assist with installation. To schedule assistance with your smoke detector, please call the American Red Cross by Thursday, October 30 at 1-800-378-8438.
“A working smoke alarm provides an early warning and critical extra second to escape,” said Kevin Kirby, Executive Director. “This is particularly important for those most at risk of dying in a home fire, such as children and seniors.”
Children are particularly vulnerable during home fires. Children ages five and under are twice as likely as the population as a whole to die in home fires. 80% of child fire fatalities occur in homes without working smoke alarms.
Adults ages 65 and older are two times more likely to die in a home fire; those ages 75 and up are three times more likely and those ages 85 and up are 4.5 times more likely to die in a home fire.
Although 92 percent of American homes have smoke alarms, non-working smoke alarms are so common that they are robbing residents of the protective benefits these critical home fire safety devices were designed to provide. The most commonly cited cause of non-working smoke alarms: worn or missing batteries.
Changing smoke alarm batteries once a year is one of the simplest, most effective ways to reduce these tragic deaths and injuries. In fact, a working smoke alarm nearly cuts in half the risk of dying in a home fire.
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