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Team Shaw turns up the heat on fire safety

  • Published
  • By Airman 1st Class Diana M. Cossaboom
  • 20th Fighter Wing Public Affairs
SHAW AIR FORCE BASE, S.C. --  The 20th Civil Engineer Squadron Fire Emergency Services and the National Fire Protection Association is scheduled to host a Fire Prevention Week campaign, Oct. 5-11.

"The goals of Fire Prevention Week are to prevent the loss of life and property damage by promoting fire safety practices in every community throughout our nation," said Cornelius Berry, 20th CES fire inspector.

The Shaw fire department will be hosting an open house at the fire department and an information booth is scheduled to be set up at the Base Exchange, Oct. 6-10.

This year's message for the nationwide campaign is: "Working smoke alarms save lives: Test yours every month."

"In a fire, seconds count," said Berry. "Roughly half of home fire deaths result from fires reported at night between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m. when most people are asleep. Home smoke alarms can alert people to a fire before it spreads, giving everyone enough time to get out."

The campaigns purpose is to influence everyone to:
· Install smoke alarms in every bedroom, outside each separate sleeping area, and on every level of the home.
· Interconnect all smoke alarms throughout the home so when one sounds, they all sound.
· Test alarms at least monthly by pushing the test button.
· Replace all smoke alarms when they are 10 years old. Replace them sooner if they are malfunctioning.
· Make sure everyone in the home knows the sound of the smoke alarm and understands what to do when it's heard.

"Since 1922, there has been a national campaign to promote fire safety," said Berry. "All fire emergency service departments are in the business of saving lives. If we can do this by preventing a fire from starting, then we have achieved our goals."

Three of every five deaths from fire are the result of fires in homes that don't have smoke alarms or don't have working smoke alarms, said Berry.

"Most people don't understand how fast a deadly home fire is and that it can happen to them," said Ernest Mitchell Jr., U.S. Fire Administration U.S. fire administrator. "They don't realize that smoke, rather than flames, is more often the killer. We need the American public to take steps to keep themselves and their families safe."

This year's goal for the campaign is to have working smoke alarms in every home so no lives are lost from fire emergencies, said Berry.

For more information on Fire Prevention Week contact Shaw Fire Prevention at (803) 895-4600.