The City of Newark, Newark Fire Department and representatives of the American Red Cross began the first of a series of home fire preparedness canvassing and smoke alarm installation events in each of the city’s five wards, on Saturday, October 17.
Volunteers and firefighters gathered at the Brick Avon Academy at 219 Avon Avenue at 8:30 a.m., and volunteers headed out to canvass approximately 1,400 homes across the City from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Volunteers and Firefighters installed 740 some alarms at homes across the City.
“Public Safety is one of the most important issues this administration is addressing, and protecting our residents from the dangers of fire is a major part of those efforts. Too many lives are needlessly lost to fire that could have been saved if the affected home had a working smoke alarm. Through this partnership with the American Red Cross, we will be able to save many residents’ lives for years to come. I thank the American Red Cross for partnering with us on this initiative to transform Newark into a safer City we can all believe in, and urge all Newark residents to join us in this initiative and protect their homes with working smoke alarms,” Mayor Baraka said.
American Red Cross Volunteers, Newark Firefighters, and volunteers from Tzu Chi and Hope Worldwide went from home to home in neighborhoods in each ward, talking with homeowners and residents to determine their needs for smoke alarms. As soon as the assessment was made, additional volunteers installed the alarms on the spot. Each alarm has a life-span of 10 years. Other partners in the event include the Newark Office of Emergency Management and the Newark Housing Authority.
October is National Fire Prevention Month, and the City is partnering with the American Red Cross in this drive to observe the month, raise public awareness of fire dangers, and enhance public safety in the City of Newark, a major objective of the Baraka administration.
“The first line of defense against fire and tragedy and Newark comes in the home,” said Director Stewart. “Working smoke alarms can enable families to evacuate their home quickly in time of fire and help them save their own lives. I am grateful to the American Red Cross and all the volunteers who joined us on this important project on Saturday. While this is Fire Prevention Month, fires never take a day off. I urge all residents of Newark to get smoke alarms and CO2 detectors for their homes, keep their batteries fresh, and learn how they can keep themselves and their homes and workplaces safe from the menace of fire.”
“Smoke alarms can cut the risk of death from a home fire in half,” said American Red Cross New Jersey Region Regional Disaster Officer Steven Sarinelli. “We are proud to be partnering with the City of Newark and the Newark Fire Department to help educate families about fire safety and bring free smoke alarms to Newark residents.”
Volunteers, identifiable by their uniforms and badges, also distributed fire safety information and talked to families about what they can do now to be prepared should a fire break out in their home.
The Red Cross is urging everyone to take two simple steps that can save lives: check their existing smoke alarms and practice fire drills at home.
Simple Steps to Save Lives
There are several things families and individuals can do to increase their chances of surviving a fire:
- If someone doesn’t have smoke alarms, install them. At a minimum, put one on every level of the home, inside bedrooms and outside sleeping areas. Local building codes vary and there may be additional requirements where someone lives.
- If someone does have alarms, test them today. If they don’t work, replace them.
- Make sure that everyone in the family knows how to get out of every room and how to get out of the home in less than two minutes.
- Practice that plan. What’s the household’s escape time?
Last year, the Red Cross launched the Home Fire Campaign in New Jersey and across the country to reduce deaths and injuries from home fires by as much as 25 percent over the next five years. As of October 1, the Red Cross and its community partners have canvassed thousands of homes and installed more than 4,500 smoke alarms in high fire-risk cities throughout New Jersey.
The Red Cross responds to nearly 70,000 disasters each year in the United States and the vast majority of those are home fires. Throughout New Jersey, the Red Cross responded to 889 home fires last year, offering comfort to 1,820 families and meeting immediate needs such as shelter, food and clothing, referrals and mental health services as needed.
