Just a couple of weeks ago, in most of the U.S. we moved the clocks forward an hour to begin Daylight Savings Time. You know – Spring forward! Lots of people were late for church that Sunday.
Lots of people also changed the batteries in their home smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors (even those that are hard-wired). The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission recommends that you change them twice a year. That way you’re assured of having fresh batteries should your family’s lives depend upon those devices. The beginning and end of Daylight Savings Time is simply a convenient time to jog your memory.
A working smoke alarm will double your chances of surviving a home fire by giving you the critical time needed to escape. More than 90 percent of all homes in the U.S. have smoke alarms, but as many as one-third of them don’t work because of old or missing batteries. And two-thirds of fire deaths occur in homes where there are no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms.
Here are a few more home-fire related tips:
- Put a smoke alarms inside and outside every room where someone sleeps and at least one on each floor.
- All residents should know how the alarm sounds and what it means.
- Clean and maintain smoke alarms according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
- Have a fire escape plan with two ways out of every room. Teach it to everyone in the home, especially children.
- When the smoke alarm sounds, get out of the home immediately and go to a pre-planned meeting place.
While you’re at it, go ahead and change the batteries in your emergency radio and flashlights. That small pile of used batteries probably still has enough life left to power less life-critical devices for awhile.
U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission press release: http://www.cpsc.gov/cpscpub/prerel/prhtml12/12127.html
More Ready Today! 