Fire Prevention Week – Don’t Wait Check the Date!

Age matters when it comes to smoke alarms and that’s the message behind this year’s Fire Prevention Week theme.  The message from the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) is, “Don’t Wait Check the Date!”  The message encourages homeowners to check the dates on their smoke alarms and to replace them if they are ten (10) years or older.

The Southlake Fire Department, along with firefighters and safety advocates nationwide, are joining forces with the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) during Fire Prevention Week, October 9-15. We are reminding residents about the importance of having working smoke alarms and replacing them every ten (10) years.

According to the latest NFPA research, working smoke alarms reduce the chance of dying in a fire, in half. Meanwhile, three out of five fire deaths resulted from fires where there were no working smoke alarms in the home. This year’s Fire Prevention Week campaign includes the following smoke alarm guidelines.

• Replace smoke alarms every 10 years
• Make sure you know how old all the smoke alarms are in your home. To check, look at the date of manufacture on the back of the alarm
• Replace any necessary backup batteries in your smoke alarm
• As a reminder from last year’s theme, “Hear the Beep Where You Sleep”, make sure every bedroom has a working smoke alarm

To find out more about Fire Prevention Week programs and activities please contact Fire Prevention Officer Renni Burt at 817-748-8349 or at rburt@ci.southlake.tx.us. For more information visit NFPA’s Web site at www.firepreventionweek.org and www.sparky.org/fpw.