Groups seek to install free smoke detectors in Cape homes Oct. 15

Two minutes. That's how long a family has to escape a burning house before it's too late, according to Red Cross executive director Sara Gerau.

It also is one of the reasons the Southeast Missouri chapter of the Red Cross, along with the Cape Girardeau Fire Department and Charter Communications, will spend Saturday morning, Oct. 15, installing free smoke alarms in Cape Girardeau homes as part of the organization's Home Fire Preparedness Campaign.

"We're looking to make more homes safer," Gerau said.

Residents can schedule a time to have a smoke alarm installed by calling (573) 335-9471, extension 1310, or by registering online at getasmokealarm.org. During the appointed time, a member of the Cape Girardeau Fire Department will arrive with two volunteers. While the firefighter installs the alarm, volunteers will talk to the homeowners about designing an escape plan in case of fire and practicing the plan at least twice a year.

"We'll talk to the family -- we like to get the children involved if they're around," Gerau said. "We'll have a 10-minute education period."

Volunteers also will go door-to-door in Cape Girardeau neighborhoods to make sure homes are properly equipped with functional smoke alarms. They will inquire about the age of batteries in the smoke alarm -- which should be replaced at least once a year -- and the smoke alarm itself.

"The shelf life of a smoke alarm is basically 10 years. You want to replace them after that," Cape Girardeau fire marshal Brian Shaffer said. "This gives them the opportunity to look at the smoke alarm and see if the resident knows how old it is so we can replace them, if need be."

The Red Cross will provide up to three smoke alarms for a home, depending on need and supply.

"We want to at least get one on the main living area or outside the bedrooms," though ideally each level of a home will have at least one, Shaffer said. According to the Red Cross, having just one working smoke alarm cuts the risk of dying in a home fire by half.

Newly constructed homes often are hard-wired with smoke alarms that will all go off when one is triggered, which is preferable to traditional smoke alarms but also not necessarily financially feasible for older homes, Shaffer said. But construction materials for new homes often are more flammable, Gerau said, so it's important for all homeowners to take proper safety measures.

And, Shaffer said, all landlords are responsible for the upkeep of the alarms in their rental properties.

The October fire safety campaign is just part of a five-year effort by the Red Cross to reduce death and injury from home fires by 25 percent. Gerau said the organization held similar smoke-detector installation days in Jackson and Poplar Bluff, Missouri, earlier this year, with one planned in Kennett, Missouri, in November.

"So we're kind of moving through different cities," she said.

Gerau said there are quite a few volunteers for the Red Cross and Charter for the educational aspect of the event, but they gladly would accept more.

As far as the firefighters, Shaffer said all four Cape Girardeau fire stations will be involved in the campaign.

"It's a great partnership we have with the Cape Girardeau fire department," Gerau said.

bbrown@semissourian.com

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