Warwick Township fire officials will be knocking on doors in the east Lambton community this month to replace expired smoke and carbon monoxide alarms.
Article content
“The last time we did this was 10 years ago,” said Watford station fire chief Rick Sitlington.
Article content
Smoke alarms have a 10-year lifespan. . . so we’re hoping by doing it again. . . we can catch any ones that are outdated,” he said.
The fire service is one of 50 in Ontario receiving a total of 10,000 combination smoke and carbon monoxide detectors from Enbridge Gas, officials said. Warwick is getting 114, Sitlington said.
Enbridge has distributed more than 86,000 alarms over 15 years as part of Safe Community Project Zero, a public education campaign with the Fire Marshal’s Public Fire Safety Council, the utility company said Oct. 5.
The Warwick door-knocking and free alarm-changing campaign will be run “in the evening, after supper,” Sitlington said.
Article content
It was busy changing out expired alarms 10 years ago, but he expects more people are changing out alarms as they expire now, he said. “I would think not as busy this year.”
Any donated alarms left over will be distributed as needed, he said. “If we go to a fire some place in the future and they need one, we hand them out.”
Enbridge Sarnia spokesperson Robin Ellwood also encouraged residents to have their fuel-burning appliances inspected annually by a licensed contractor, calling installing and testing combination smoke and carbon monoxide alarms a vital second line of defense.
All Ontario homes with fuel-burning appliances or attached garages must have carbon monoxide alarms, said Jon Pegg, with the public safety council, in a release.
The campaign is about cutting fire- and carbon monoxide-related deaths to zero, officials said.
Share this article in your social network