Despite decades of fire safety education highlighting their importance, a recent report by the Local Government Association (LGA) estimates that more than 2 million homes in England alone still do not have a working smoke alarm.
The stark warning has been issued during the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC) Home Safety Week as part of Hampshire Fire & Rescue Service’s home fire safety advice.
NFCC Home Safety Week is held every Autumn, and this year the focus of the campaign is around installing alarms and improving standards of detection in the home, to reduce the number of casualties and fatalities.
Group Manager for Community Safety at Hampshire Fire and Rescue Service, John Amos said:
“We cannot stress enough how vital having adequate smoke detection in the home is and the difference it can make if a fire occurs.
“Smoke alarms provide an early warning of incidents and provide precious time to escape.
“Adequate working smoke detection should be fitted on every level of your home and in the rooms used most often, as this is where a fire is most likely to start.
“Regular testing is essential – check all alarms ideally once a week but at least once a month. Batteries should also be changed regularly.”
You can buy a smoke alarm on Amazon starting from £9.99p
Before you go...
WE NEED YOUR HELP. As former emergency services & armed forces personnel, we pride ourselves on bringing you important, fast-moving and breaking news stories & videos which are free from the negative 'anti' bias which is often directed at the emergency services & NHS by some sections of the mainstream media.
One of the reasons we started 'Emergency Services News' back in 2018 was because we became tired of reading badly informed stories about the emergency services.
We want to be the unheard voice of the remarkable men and women who serve in the emergency services, NHS and armed forces. And with around 500k page views each month, we are getting there!
As income from ads, the mainstay source of income for most publishers, continues to decline; we need the help of you, our readers.
You can support emergency services news from as little as £1. It only takes a minute. Every contribution, however big or small, is vital for our future.
Please help us to continue to highlight the life-saving work of the emergency services, NHS and armed forces by becoming a supporter.
