Red Cross and Holts Summit Fire Department team up to install free smoke alarms
HOLTS SUMMIT, Mo. (KMIZ)
The Holts Summit Fire Department and the Central and Northern Missouri Red Cross Chapter are teaming up to install working smoke alarms Saturday in residents' homes at J&L Mobile Home Park in Holts Summit.
The installation is scheduled to take place from 9:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. Saturday.
The effort is part of a national home fire campaign for the Red Cross called "Sound The Alarm." According to Red Cross, house fires are the nation’s most frequent disaster.
Since July 1. 2022, the Central and Northern Missouri chapter of the Red Cross and its local partners have installed more than 272 free smoke alarms, making 101 households safer.
Also, according to the organization in Central and Northern Missouri, The Red Cross teams have responded to nearly 140 home fires since and helped nearly 450 people since July 1. 2022.
Rebecca Gordon, Executive Director for Red Cross Central and Northern Missouri chapter says anyone who missed out on a new smoke alarm Saturday, can still get one at a later time.
"We have a couple of hundred smoke alarms on hand and this is the inventory that we'll use over the next several weeks but we want to make sure that they are not sitting in the back of our car and that they are actually in homes making a difference," Gordon said to ABC 17 News.
The National Fire Protection Association says when it comes to smoke alarms in your home, you'll want to keep a few safety tips in mind.
- Install smoke alarms in every bedroom and on every level of your home
- Use interconnected smoke alarms. When one smoke alarm sounds, they all should sound.
- Test all smoke alarms at least once a month by pressing the test button to be sure the alarm is working and replace them when they are old.
Those looking to participate in the national campaign can do so by going to soundthealarm.org/missouri.
People can help by signing up for a free smoke alarm, volunteering to install an alarm, or make a financial donation to the Red Cross to help people prepare for, respond to, and recover from a house fire.
