October 24, 2002

PRESS RELEASE

To: Newsroom
For Immediate Release
Contact: Brian A. Crawford, Public Information Officer
Phone: 673-6652, cell: 455-2609, page: 675-2137

It’s Time To Change Smoke Alarm Batteries

"Change Your Clock, Change Your Battery" . . .

As the fall time change approaches this Sunday, October 27, the Shreveport Fire Department wants to remind residence to make another change that could save their lives - changing the batteries in their smoke alarms.

An average of three children a day die in home fires and 82 percent of those occur in homes without working smoke alarms. Non-working smoke alarms rob residence of the protective benefits home fire safety devices were designed to provide. The most commonly sited cause of non-working smoke alarms: worn out or missing batteries.

Changing smoke alarm batteries at least once a year is one of the simplest, most effective ways to reduce these tragic deaths and injuries. In fact, working smoke alarms nearly cut in half the risk of dying in a home fire.

To save lives and prevent needless injuries in Shreveport, the fire department has joined forces with the International Association of Fire Chiefs and Energizer brand batteries for the 15^th year of the "Change Your Clock, Change Your Battery" campaign. The program urges all Americans to adopt a simple, lifesaving habit: change smoke alarm batteries when changing clocks back to standard time each fall.

Fire Chief Kelvin Cochran recommends residents use the "extra" hour they save from the time change to test smoke alarms by pushing the test button, planning "two ways out" and practicing fire escape routes with the entire family. "A residential fire impacts the life of an American family every 85 seconds, with fire deaths peaking in the winter months," "By encouraging families to take a proactive approach to fire safety by changing smoke alarm batteries when changing clocks with each time change, this program has the potential to truly make a difference in our battle against home fire injuries and deaths," says Cochran ###