CAL FIRE: Change Your Clocks, Change Your Smoke Detector Batteries

Friday, March 9, 2012

CAL FIRE: Change Your Clocks, Change Your Smoke Detector Batteries

Time Change Brings Reminder to Check Smoke Alarm Batteries

Test Your Smoke Alarm

Sacramento – On Saturday night, March 10, Californians will be turning their clocks forward in observance
of Daylight Saving Time. And when they do, CAL FIRE is reminding them to replace the batteries in all
smoke alarms. Firefighters are also urging residents to replace the batteries in the carbon monoxide (CO)
alarms as well.

This minimal effort could mean the difference between life and death. Already this year several fatalities
have occurred in California which might have been prevented with working smoke alarms.
“CAL FIRE has long advocated the ‘Change Your Clock, Change Your Battery’ campaign,” said Chief
Ken Pimlott, director of CAL FIRE. “A smoke alarm is one of the cheapest and most effective ways
homeowners can provide year round fire protection for themselves and their families.”

Every year lives are lost in homes without smoke detectors or those homes with a non-functioning smoke
detector. In a study conducted by the National Fire Prevention Association (NFPA), nearly 96% of
households report having at least one fire alarm. Yet the US Fire Administration reports residential fires
make up nearly 83% of all civilian fire deaths. The culprit is generally a disconnected or dead battery.
Save a life. Change your clocks; change your smoke alarm batteries. Fire officials also remind residents
that smoke alarms should be replaced at least every ten years and when residents buy a new one, purchase
an alarm with 10-year batteries

“Smoke alarms and carbon monoxide alarms unquestionably help save lives, but they are nothing without
working batteries inside of them,” said Chief Tonya Hoover, California’s state fire marshal. “Just a few
minutes twice a year to change that battery can truly mean the difference between life and death."

For more information, visit the CAL FIRE website at www.fire.ca.gov.
CONTACT: Daniel Berlant
(916) 651-FIRE (3473)
Julie Hutchinson
(951) 377-8380

California Fire News 2011

- Follow @CalFireNews

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How fires get their names

Every year in California thousands of wildfires start throughout the state. In most cases, the dispatch center sending the initial resources to a wildland fire will designate a name for the fire, but the first on scene engine or fire official can also name the incident. Fires are usually named for the area in which they start – a geographical location, local landmark, street, lake, mountain, peak, etc. Quickly naming the fire provides responding fire resources with an additional locater, and allows fire officials to track and prioritize incidents by name. For example during the Southern California Fire Siege of 2003, the largest wildland fire in California history, the Cedar Fire in San Diego County, was named after the Cedar Creek Falls area where it started. The destructive Old Fire, which burned during the same time period in San Bernardino County, was named after the road along which it started - Old Waterman Canyon Road.

CAL FIRE is the largest fire department in California and the second largest fire department in the United States. CDF - CAL FIRE Firefighters answer the call more than 300,000 times a year. CAL FIRE Firefighters make up the fire department for 30 of our 58 counties in California and more than 100 local communities. We serve as the incident command during many of California’s most serious disasters. CAL FIRE Firefighters respond to many various types and forms of calls ranging from structural fires, to auto accidents, to earthquakes, to floods, to the spilling of hazardous materials, to every conceivable disaster; CAL FIRE answer's the calls. CAL FIRE is the largest fire department in California and the second largest fire department in the United States . CAL FIRE firefighters protect 33 million acres of State Responsibility Area (SRA). We have over 4,000 members within CAL FIRE and CAL FIRE is associated with the California Professional Firefighters (CPF) and the International Association of Firefighters (IAFF).

CFN - CALIFORNIA FIRE NEWS - CAL FIRE NEWS

Friday, March 9, 2012