IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CARBONDALE - As Fire Prevention Week™ approaches, the City of Carbondale Fire Department reminds residents that “Fire won’t wait. Plan your escape.™”
The City of Carbondale is teaming up with the National Fire Protection Association® (NFPA®) to celebrate the 100th anniversary of Fire Prevention Week™ (FPW), October 9-15, 2022. This year’s FPW campaign, “Fire won’t wait. Plan your escape™”, works to educate everyone about simple but important actions they can take to keep themselves and those around them safe from home fires.
“Today’s homes burn faster than ever. You may have as little as two minutes (or even less time) to safely escape a home fire from the time the smoke alarm sounds. Your ability to get out of a home during a fire depends on early warning from smoke alarms and advance planning,” said Lorraine Carli, via the president of Outreach and Advocacy at NFPA.
The City of Carbondale Fire Department encourages all residents to embrace the 2022 Fire Prevention Week theme. “It’s important for everyone to plan and practice a home fire escape. Everyone needs to be prepared in advance so that they know what to do when the smoke alarm sounds. Given that every home is different, every home fire escape plan will also be different,” said Fire Chief Mike Hertz. “Have a plan for everyone in the home. Children, older adults, and people with disabilities may need assistance to wake up and get out. Make sure that someone will help them!”
The City of Carbondale wants to share these key home fire escape planning tips:
- Make sure your plan meets the needs of all your family members, including those with sensory or physical disabilities.
- Smoke alarms should be installed inside every sleeping room, outside each separate sleeping area, and on every level of your home. Smoke alarms should be interconnected so that when one sounds, they all sound.
- Know at least two ways out of every room, if possible. Make sure all doors and windows open easily.
- Have an outside meeting place a safe distance from your home where everyone should meet.
- Practice your home fire drill at least twice a year with everyone in the household, including guests. Practice at least once during the day and at night.
To actively support this campaign the City of Carbondale Fire Department will kick off National Fire Prevention Week with an Open House at Fire Station #2, located at 401 N. Glenview Drive, from 9:00 a.m. – 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, October 8. Sparky the Fire Dog will be present along with a fire extinguisher demonstration and vehicle extrication demonstration. Please stop by for a tour of the fire station and give us an opportunity to become better acquainted and to inform you of our services. The City of Carbondale Fire Department conducted fire drills at Parrish, Thomas, Lewis, Carbondale Middle School, Trinity Christian, and CCHS schools. Along with the CCHS Lifesavers, the Fire Department will visit the schools for presentations.
In addition, the City of Carbondale Fire Department has once again joined forces with the International Association of Fire Chiefs for the “Change Your Clock, Change Your Battery” campaign to save lives and prevent needless injuries. The program urges everyone to adopt a simple, lifesaving habit: change smoke alarm batteries when changing clocks back to standard time, this year on Sunday, November 6.
A 2017 Illinois law requires ten-year sealed smoke alarms to be installed in all homes built before 1988 or that do not have hardwired smoke detectors by January 1, 2023. Because the battery is sealed inside the alarm, it doesn’t need to be replaced and cannot be removed. At the end of its 10-year life cycle, the alarm will automatically alert the homeowner to replace the alarm.
The City of Carbondale Fire Department will provide and install free smoke detector(s) as well as replace smoke alarm batteries in any person’s home in Carbondale that cannot afford to purchase one. We strongly encourage our citizens to take advantage of this program. The City of Carbondale Fire Department is doing its part to educate about the importance of fire prevention, but true safety lies with you and your willingness to take the steps needed to protect your home and family from fire. Our sincere hope is that everyone participates in one or more of these activities, and starts working towards an educated community protected from the devastation of fire.
For more information about the Fire Prevention Week program and activities, please contact the City of Carbondale Fire Department Administrative Office at 618-457-3234 or like our Facebook page: City of Carbondale Fire Department. For more information about Fire Prevention Week and fire prevention in general, visit The National Fire Protection Association and Sparky the Fire Dog.
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