WOTV 4 Women is proud to team up with several West Michigan fire departments, Kidde, ESCAPE Fire Safety and The Home Depot for Operation Save a Life- a collective commitment to promote fire and carbon monoxide safety.
Throughout the month of March WOTV 4 Women is airing fire safety and carbon monoxide poisoning prevention messages. If you’re interested in having a smoke detector or carbon monoxide detector installed in your home ESCAPE Fire Safety can help connect you with an area fire department. Email [email protected] for more information.
As part of Operation Save a Life, Kidde along with and The Home Depot, will be donating thousands of Kidde-brand smoke detectors and CO alarms to participating Fire Departments for distribution to homes in their communities. Home Depot will also be hosting Save a Life Saturday Events on March 7th, 2015 . Their team of experts will be answering all your safety questions and giving fire prevention tips so you can keep your family safe. See list below for participating Home Depot locations.
Save A Life Saturday Events
KENTWOOD
4646 28TH STREET, SE GRAND RAPIDS MI 49512
WALKER
2727 ALPINE AVE NW WALKER MI 49544
WYOMING
4900 WILSON AVE SW GRANDVILLE MI 49418
ROOSEVELT PARK
2699 HENRY STREET MUSKEGON MI 49441
WYOMING
257 54TH STREET SW WYOMING MI 49548
GRAND HAVEN
900 JACKSON STREET GRAND HAVEN MI 49417
Did you know three out of five home fire deaths result from fires in properties without working smoke alarms? More than one-third (37%) of home fire deaths result from fires in which no smoke alarms are present. The risk of dying in a home fire is cut in half in homes with working smoke alarms.
Michigan Civilian Fire Fatalities (from the United States Fire Administration)
- Currently, Michigan ranks #2 in the country for civilian fire fatalities
- As of 12/31/2014, West Michigan accounted for 26% of the state’s civilian fire fatalities
- Fire fatalities are affecting older adults (those over 65 years) and younger children (those under 14) at a faster rate compared to any other age group.
- Since 2012, Michigan fire fatality numbers have been the worst, not seen since 1999.
Operation Save a Life
Kidde and WOTV 4 Women are proud to partner together on Operation Save A Life — a public service campaign designed to educate consumers and raise awareness about the dangers of fire and carbon monoxide poisoning. Since 2002, Kidde has donated more than 1 million smoke alarms to participating fire departments for installation in area homes as part of this program.
In addition, each area specific ABC-affiliate creates safety vignettes that air during the campaign. Our hope is that these educational messages combined with Kidde product donations and informative product displays in retail stores across the country will help save lives.
Kidde donated 2,500 smoke alarms and 500 carbon monoxide alarms for installation by fire departments and other trained professionals in select homes throughout West Michigan. Each type of alarm contain a 10-year sealed battery for worry-free protection.
You can follow the Operation Save A Life conversation via #OpSaveALife and by liking Kidde’s Facebook and Twitter pages.
Learn more: http://www.kidde.com/IntheCommunity/Pages/OperationSaveALife.aspx
Kidde
Kidde is a leading manufacturer of residential smoke alarms, carbon monoxide (CO) alarms and fire extinguishers. It has been delivering advanced fire-safety technology since producing the first integrated smoke detection and carbon dioxide extinguishing system in 1917. Kidde is a part of UTC Building & Industrial Systems, a unit of United Technologies Corp., a leading provider to the aerospace and building systems industries worldwide. For more information, visit http://www.kidde.com/ or follow @KiddeSafety on Twitter (https://twitter.com/KiddeSafety).
For more information on Operation Save A Life or to find out how to get a smoke detector or carbon monoxide detector installed into your West Michigan home contact us:
Email: [email protected]
This summer promises to be full of free family fun with a new schedule of Maranda Park Parties. Families are invited from across West Michigan! E.S.C.A.P.E. Fire Safety and Jake the Fire Safety Dog will be teaching fire safety at all of the Park Parties again this summer.
Maranda and the Park Party team are headed to five communities this year:.
- June 25 – Lamar Park, Wyoming
- July 9 – Berlin Raceway, Marne
- July 16 – Kollen Park, Holland
- July 23 – Smith Ryerson Park, Muskegon
- July 30 – Northwestern Middle School, Battle Creek
Each Park Party is held from noon until 2 p.m. Free lunch is served to anyone 18 and under starting at 11:30 a.m., while supplies last. Every Park Party includes free activities, games, entertainment, and prizes! Everyone is invited and everything is free!
Follow updates about the Park Parties this year on social media using #MarandaParkParty!
As the temps drop, the chance for a home fire increases. In fact, heating is the #2 cause for home fires. Firefighter Michael McLeieer from E.S.C.A.P.E. talks with Jeremy Lawrence on the AM 590 WKZO Morning Show this morning.
Michigan ranks #4 in the country for home fire deaths so far in 2015. The most common factor in most fire fatalities were homes that did not have working smoke alarms.
Working smoke alarms reduce the risk of dying in a fire by as much as 60%.
Adults over 65 are TWICE as likely to die in a home fire and seniors over age 85 are FOUR times as likely to die in a home fire.
Here are some additional fire safety reminders to practice in the home:
Give space heaters space. Keep space heaters at least 3 feet away from anything that can catch fire (furniture, drapes, newspapers). Unplug space heaters when you leave the room or you go to bed.
Smoke alarms save lives. Install and maintain smoke alarms and batteries on every level of the home and inside and outside the sleeping areas. Replace alarms which are older than 10 years in age and change the batteries twice a year (when the clocks are moved forward in the Spring or moved back in the Fall).
Keep older adults safe from fire. Older adults, especially those with mobility issues, should consider sleeping on the main level of the home and near an exit, so rapid escape is possible during fire or smoke conditions.
For more information on fire safety, or learn how to obtain a free smoke alarm to be installed in your home, contact www.escapeinc.org email at [email protected] or call 1-877-707-1718.
More than 150 people in the U.S. die every year from accidental non fire-related carbon monoxide poisoning.
Like fire, carbon monoxide (CO) is just as deadly. It’s called the silent killer because it’s colorless, odorless and invisible. More than 150 people in the United States die every year from accidental non fire-related CO poisoning associated with consumer products, including generators. When you breathe in CO, it makes you feel nauseous, dizzy, head-achy, and tired like you have the flu. It also makes it difficult to think clearly. CO poisons the body by removing oxygen in the blood stream, slowing suffocating you and eventually causing unconsciousness and even death.
Winter snows can create drifts that block exhaust vents, forcing CO to back-up into your home. High efficiency appliances and those with power-vent blowers by definition waste less heat, so the exhaust air temperature is very low. Often it is too low to melt snow or ice in a plugged exhaust pipe or vent. Keep sidewall and direct vents clear of obstructions, drifting snow and bushes to provide proper ventilation.
Where does CO come from?
Heating equipment is the leading cause of CO incidents. It can also come from hot water heaters, gas stoves, gas dryers, barbecue grills, fireplaces, and from cars, lawn mowers, snow blowers or generators running inside the garage – even with the door open. A large number of CO incidents take place between the months of November and February and between 5 p.m. and 10 a.m. This is the time when most heating equipment is being used at home.
Facts & figures
- The dangers of CO exposure depend on a number of variables, including the victim’s health and activity level. Infants, pregnant women, and people with physical conditions that limit their body’s ability to use oxygen (i.e. emphysema, asthma, heart disease) can be more severely affected by lower concentrations of CO than healthy adults would be.
- A person can be poisoned by a small amount of CO over a longer period of time or by a large amount of CO over a shorter amount of time.
- In 2010, S. fire departments responded to an estimated 80,100 non-fire CO incidents in which carbon monoxide was found, or an average of nine such calls per hour. The number of incidents increased 96 percent from 40,900 incidents reported in 2003. This increase is most likely due to the increased use of CO detectors, which alert people to the presence of CO.
What to do if you suspect CO exposure
- Get out of the house or car and get fresh air.
- Call the fire department or 911 from a neighbor’s house.
- If you have symptoms, seek medical help immediately.
For more information on carbon monoxide safety, please visit the National Fire Protection Association or the United States Fire Administration websites.
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