Fire prevention week kicks off, highlighting proactive planning

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KRDO) -- Fire prevention week kicks off Sunday. It's a campaign to bring fire safety to light and be proactive in fire planning.

This year's theme for the 100th anniversary of fire prevention week is, "Fire won't wait, plan your escape." The goal is to emphasize the importance of practicing your escape plan and testing your smoke alarms.

"We encourage everyone to take this month and spend a few minutes to go hit those buttons around their house," Sunny Smaldino with the Colorado Springs Fire Department said. "To make sure they're working, make sure they have them all in the right spots, and to get out and practice their escape plans."

75% of all U.S. fire deaths occur in homes. Cooking and home heating are the leading causes of house fires. The threat of home fires increases with colder temperatures.

The Colorado Springs Fire Department says smoke alarms should be installed inside every sleeping room, outside each separate sleeping area, and on every level of your home. The alarms should be interconnected, so when one sounds they all sound.

"It is the first thing and the thing that saves lives," Smaldino said. "We only have two to three minutes to get out of a home now, and things that burn in our homes burn quicker than they used to. So we want to make sure people understand that a smoke alarm is your first line of defense to be notified to get out."

Fire officials also advise knowing at least two ways of getting out of every room, and to make sure all doors and windows open easily.

People used to have over ten minutes to escape a typical home fire from the time a smoke alarm sounds. But today, fire experts estimate that time frame is as little as two minutes. This much smaller window of escape time is due to the way newer homes tend to be constructed. Plus, modern home furnishings are often made with synthetic materials. Those materials burn faster and generate toxic smoke, making it extremely difficult to see and breathe.

Fire officials recommend practicing your escape plan with everyone in the household, including adapting the plan to all ages and teaching children what a smoke alarm sounds like.

Visit redcross.org/ASL-disaster-resources for information on resources for those hard of hearing. Such as strobe light installation or bed-shaker alarms.

Residents in need of an alarm can contact Red Cross to request a free smoke alarm installation.

There are events Saturday, October 15 from 10:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. in which the Colorado Springs Fire Department and American Red Cross will be installing smoke and carbon monoxide alarms for free in mobile home communities. 

It will be located at the Shangri-la Mobile Home Community, Community Center located at 3526 N. Cascade Ave. The event will canvas three mobile home communities:

1.  Sunset Hills Mobile Home Park

2.  Shangri-La Mobile Home Park

3.  Monument Creek Mobile Home Park

CSFD is also holding its "Chalk One Up for Fire Safety" contest for the month of October to encourage having a home fire escape plan. They are asking the community to create a chalk drawing on their driveway or sidewalk with a fire safety message. Once their drawing is complete, they can snap a picture and submit it to either Twitter(@CSFDPIO), Instagram(@colorado_springs_fire), or Facebook (@CSFDPIO) and tag CSFD in it with the hashtag #FPM2022CSFD. The CSFD Fire Chief and his staff will vote on the top ten drawings that will be awarded a prize. Winners will be announced Friday, November 4.

For more information on fire prevention week, visit the National Fire Protection Association website.