October has been designated “Fire Safety Month” to commemorate the infamous Great Chicago Fire that occurred in October of 1871. More than 300 people died in that fire and almost one-third of Chicago burned. Out of the Chicago ashes grew the realization that stricter building standards, with special attention to fire safety, should be included in future building construction. That was then….this is now: In 2017, fires caused 3,400 civilian deaths and 14,670 injured in fires across the US: 77% of those fires occur in residences.
How important are smoke detectors? According to the National Fire Prevention
Association (NFPA) there is a home fire every 63 seconds. Properly installed and
maintained smoke alarms play a vital role in reducing fire deaths and injuries.
Consider these NFPA Statistics:
- U.S. fire departments respond to an average of one home fire every 86 seconds.
- Three of every five home fire deaths resulted from fires in homes with no smoke
alarms (38%) or no working smoke alarms (21%). - On average, seven people per day die in U.S. home fires.
- Home fires were responsible for 10,600 civilian injuries, or 72% of all civilian
injuries, in 2017. - Dead batteries caused one-quarter (24%) of the smoke alarm failures.
- An estimated $23 billion in property damage occurred as a result of fire in
2017, a large increase, as this number includes a $10 billion loss in wildfires in
Northern California.
If these statistics aren’t enough incentive to install smoke alarms and to check and
maintain them regularly – Think about the safety of your family!
Please visit the following website for additional information about Fire Safety:
The National Fire Prevention Association (NFPA) web site offers informative fire safety
“Tool Kits”, videos, and information related to heating equipment, kitchen fires, clothes
dryers, and a number of other fire safety subjects. All of these resources are free and
downloadable from the Safety Information page on the NFPA website: www.nfpa.org.
