Red Cross Continues to Install Smoke Alarms and Teach People Fire Safety as Part of Home Fire Preparedness Campaign

The American Red Cross continues its campaign in Tennessee and across the country to reduce deaths and injuries from home fires by as much as 25 percent over a five year period.

In its second year, the campaign focuses on increasing the amount of smoke alarms in neighborhoods with high risk of home fires and encourages everyone to create and practice their fire escape plans.

Here in Tennessee, 650 families are safer thanks to the smoke alarms and safety education they received in their homes from Red Cross volunteers and other community partners. Since July 1, 2015, 1,192 smoke alarms have been installed throughout the state, with many more installations planned for the remainder of FY16.

Statewide sponsors for the campaign are Allstate, CHI Memorial and Memorial Foundation.

SIMPLE STEPS TO SAVE LIVES The Red Cross is calling on everyone to take two simple steps that can save lives: check their existing smoke alarms and practice fire drills at home,

There are several other things families and individuals can do to increase their chances of surviving a fire:

•    If someone doesn’t have smoke alarms, install them. At a minimum, put one on every level of the home, inside bedrooms and outside sleeping areas. Local building codes vary and there may be additional requirements where someone lives.
•    If someone does have alarms, test them today. If they don’t work, replace them.
•    Make sure that everyone in the family knows how to get out of every room and how to get out of the home in less than two minutes.
•    Practice that plan. What’s the household’s escape time?

RED CROSS APPS People can learn how to help prevent a home fire and what to do if one occurs by downloading the Red Cross Emergency App. They can use the app’s Family Safe feature to help stay in touch with loved ones. Children can earn points and incentives in a fun, gaming environment while learning how to prevent a home fire and other emergencies in the Monster Guard: Prepare for Emergencies App. The First Aid App provides expert advice including what to do for burns, broken bones, and breathing and cardiac emergencies. The apps can be downloaded for free in app stores or at redcross.org/apps.