Posted:
Halifax Regional Fire & Emergency (HRFE) wishes to remind you to ‘fall back’ this Saturday night before you go to bed.
When you push back your clocks by an hour you should also change the batteries in your smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. While you’re at it, check the expiry on the back of the alarms. The National Fire Protection Association recommends smoke alarms be replaced every 10 years.
And while we encourage people to change alarm batteries when adjusting the time on your clocks, you should test your smoke or carbon monoxide alarms once a month, to ensure they are still working.
HRFE investigators frequently discover smoke alarms didn’t sound when they followed up on fire fatalities. Usually it’s either because the alarm was disconnected, batteries were dead, or they were taken out to be used for something else and not replaced.
HRFE has a program called, ‘Alarmed and Ready’. The purpose of the program is to provide a smoke or carbon monoxide alarm for those who do not have the financial means to obtain one.
Call 311 to place a request for an alarm.
This program also gives our front-line firefighters an opportunity to educate the public on the importance of an early warning device in the home, and to demonstrate to residents how to maintain and test their alarms.