Fire Departments Urge Residents Check Smoke Detectors Before Wintertime

From Tomball Fire Department:According to a 2015 report from the Texas State Fire Marshal’s Office 35% of all residential structure fires involving fatalities had NO working smoke alarms. When a fire breaks out in the home, occupants have only minutes to escape – in fact, every three hours, someone in the U.S

dies in a home fire. It’s a known fact that working smoke alarms installed throughout the home increase the chances of surviving a fire in the home. Smoke alarms detect the smoke generated by flaming or smoldering fires, and on average, families have less than three minutes from the time the first smoke alarm sounds to escape a fire.

The sooner an alarm is heard, the more time there is to respond and escape.

“The most important thing is to ensure that there are working smoke alarms on every floor of the home, in hallways, in living areas, inside bedrooms, and outside of sleeping areas,” according to Joe Sykora, City of Tomball Fire Marshal . “It’s also important to remember that smoke alarms do not last forever. They should be replaced every 10 years and tested monthly.” Homeowners are especially encouraged to make sure they have smoke alarms in or just outside every bedroom.

On October 7th 2017 over 250 smoke alarms were installed in homes throughout the Tomball area. The Tomball Fire Department and 29 volunteers from the Lone Star College Cy-Fair Fire Academy, Tomball High School Student Council, and the Tomball Citizens Emergency Response Team (CERT) joined with the American Red Cross Sound the Alarm campaign to provide smoke alarms to area residents.

Any area citizen who would like to have a smoke detector installed in their home may contact the Tomball Fire Department at 281-351-7101 option 0

Image via Pixabay