CARBONDALE, Ill. (WSIL) -- Local and state fire officials met to highlight a no-cost smoke alarm installation program for residents in Carbondale. They are also raising awareness for working smoke alarms and how important they are.
Personnel with the State Fire Marshal's Office James Rivera, along with Camp I Am Me by the Fire Safety Alliance Executive Director Philip Zaleski and Carbondale Fire Chief Robert Miller, met on Tuesday afternoon to educate the public on the importance of working smoke detectors installed in their homes.
The Carbondale Fire Department is promoting their no-cost smoke alarm installation program which is available to residents in Carbondale.Â
“The OSFM is committed to helping make communities safer by providing resources to local fire departments and encouraging them to engage their community members through the “Be Alarmed!� or similar fire prevention programs,� said Illinois State Fire Marshal James A. Rivera. “Sadly, in 2023 there were 89 residential fire deaths in Illinois with the majority of these deaths occurring in homes without working smoke detectors. It’s simple, working smoke alarms save lives!"
“Nothing is more heartbreaking than to respond to a fatal fire and find non-working or the lack of smoke alarms in the home. While the number of fire deaths may have decreased in the past few decades, you are more likely to die in a residential fire than you were years ago because of smoke inhalation � which is why escape time is so critical,� said Carbondale Fire Chief Robert Miller. “We encourage all residents to actively support the 2024 Fire Prevention Week theme, ‘Smoke alarms: Make them work for you!� Working smoke alarms can make a life-saving difference in a home fire, giving people the time to get out safely.�
This is part of a nationwide effort to educate the public on working smoke detectors in their homes. The National Fire Protection Association says these smoke alarms reduce the risk of dying during a fire by 54%.
Fire officials also say statistics show three out of five fire related deaths happen in homes with either no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms.
“We are committed to helping protect the residents of Carbondale by ensuring they have working smoke alarms in their homes and making sure they understand the importance of having a fire safety escape plan that meets all needs of their entire family,� said Chief Robert Miller.
Below is a list of safety tips and guidelines by the Carbondale Fire Department...
- Install smoke alarms in every bedroom, outside each sleeping area, and on each level of the home.
- Make sure smoke alarms meet the needs of all family members, including those with sensory or physical disabilities.
- Test smoke alarms at least once a month by pushing the test button.
- Replace all broken or expired smoke alarms that are 10 years old or older.
“The Be Alarmed! Smoke Alarm installation program aims to protect and educate residents across the entire state of Illinois, while reducing residential fire deaths and injuries,� said Philip Zaleski Executive Director of Camp I Am Me by Illinois Fire Safety Alliance. “The partnerships we have built between us, the OSFM, and the 305 Illinois fire departments participating in this program, which includes Carbondale and other departments in the area, has led to more than 35,000 smoke alarms being distributed to protect Illinois residents.�
Camp I Am Me said they also recently awarded a grant for the Be Alarmed! program through the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Assistance (FEMA) to the Firefighter Grant program. They said with the $299,000 grant, the program will be able to purchase 16,000 10-year sealed battery smoke alarms and nearly 400 bed shaker smoke alarm aids for deaf or hard-of-hearing residents.
"'Be Alarmed!' is a fire safety education and smoke alarm installation program administered cooperatively between Camp I Am Me (CIAM) and the Office of the Illinois State Fire Marshal (OSFM). The program distributes fire safety education materials and 10-year sealed battery smoke alarms to fire departments in the state of Illinois. The fire departments then deliver the education while installing smoke alarms in at-risk homes within their communities. Both the educational materials and smoke alarms are provided at no cost as a result of funding from both the CIAM and OSFM," the Camp I Am Me detailed in a statement.
For more information about the program, you can find it .
