Daylight Saving Time is coming up, and when we set our clocks forward on March 9, Valley Children's with the American Red Cross encourages everyone to TURN their clocks forward one hour and TEST their smoke alarms.
As you may know, sadly, home fires represent an all-too-common disaster threat here in the Central Valley and across the country. Nationwide, the Red Cross responds to some 65,000 disasters each year, the vast majority of them home fires. Working smoke alarms can cut the risk of dying in a home fire by half, so that is why it is critical to “Turn and Test”.
Use these lifesaving steps to stay safe from the nation’s most frequent disaster:
- Install smoke alarms on every level of your home, including inside and outside bedrooms and sleeping areas. Test alarms monthly and replace the batteries at least once a year if your model requires them.
- Replace smoke alarms that are 10 years or older. That’s because the sensor becomes less sensitive over time. Check the date of your smoke alarms and follow the manufacturer’s instructions.
- Practice your two-minute escape plan. Make sure everyone in your household can get out in less than two minutes — the amount of time you may have to get out of a burning home before it’s too late. Include at least two ways to get out of every room and select a meeting spot at a safe distance away from your home, such as your neighbor’s home or landmark like a specific tree in your front yard, where everyone knows where to meet.
- Teach children what a smoke alarm sounds like. Talk about fire safety and what to do in an emergency. Use resources like the Red Cross Prepare with Pedro series that teaches age-appropriate skills for handling a home fire emergency and other stressful situations through videos and storybooks.
By implementing these tips, your Turn & Test will get easier every daylight savings! For more fire preparedness tips, visit redcross.org/fire and download the free Red Cross Emergency app by searching “American Red Cross” in app stores.
Valley Children's thanks the Red Cross for the collaboration on this blog and joining our efforts in keeping our community safe.