Governor Sam Brownback Friday signed a proclamation declaring Oct. 5-11 as Fire Prevention Week. Locally, the annual observance is a chance to focus the community’s attention on fires and the tolls they can take.
Coinciding with National Fire Prevention Week, the campaign focuses on educating the public on the importance of smoke alarms. This year’s theme is “Working Smoke Alarms Save Lives: Test Yours Every Month!”
According to the latest National Fire Protection Association research, working smoke alarms cut the chance of dying in a fire in half. Meanwhile, almost two-thirds of home fire deaths resulted from fires in homes with no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms.
“In a fire, seconds count,” said Doug Jorgensen, State Fire Marshal. “Roughly half of home fire deaths result from fires reported at night between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. when most people are asleep. Home smoke alarms can alert people to a fire before it spreads, giving everyone enough time to get out.”
Fire Prevention Week was established to commemorate the Great Chicago Fire in 1871 which killed more than 250 people, left 100,000 homeless, destroyed more than 17,400 structures and burned more than 2,000 acres. The fire began on Oct. 8, but continued into and did most of its damage on Oct. 9.
A lot has changed since then. Today, we have better methods to fight fires as well as better ways to keep us safe. We should all use this time to remind ourselves that we must remain vigilant and use the tools at our disposal.
Dale Hogg