MONTGOMERY COUNTY FIRE & RESCUE In Partnership with: REBUILDING TOGETHER Presents: FIRE SAFETY INFORMATION FOR HOUSE CAPTAINS Montgomery County Fire & Rescue

You don’t have to be dressed like this to save lives. In fact, most fire victims have already perished before the Fire Department arrives. The best chance someone has to survive is to have early warning and an escape plan.

Early Warning Device: YES! Smoke alarms do save lives. After World War II and until the early 1970’s more then 10,000 people died annually in the US from fire-related incidents. Over the past five years, the annual number has been less then 4000! YES! Smoke alarms do save lives.

They have to work: Of the 3200 fire fatalities last year 70% of them were in homes where the smoke alarm was missing or not working. The smoke alarms you will be installing have batteries that last for ten years.

Where do they go? In most cases you will simply be replacing the smoke alarms that are already in place although often all you will see is the old smoke alarm bracket. Let’s look at where the smoke alarms SHOULD be placed.

MONTGOMERY COUNTY FIRE & RESCUE SMOKE ALARM REQUIREMENTS FOR SINGLE FAMILY AND TOWNHOMES BY MONTH/YEAR OF CONSTRUCTION CONSTRUCTED: HANDOUT HAS LATEST INFORMATION ALARM HANDOUT HAS LATEST INFORMATION TYPE: LOCATION: HANDOUT HAS LATEST INFORMATION NOTE: Use this information as a guide. Houses that were built within a year or so of the listed dates may or may not be an exact match. The date a building permit was issued dictates which set of codes the house must be built to.

THE BASICS A smoke alarm should be located on each floor level A smoke alarm should be outside of every sleeping room *The instructions, found inside with the smoke alarm, do a good job of describing the best placement as well as the areas to avoid when locating smoke alarms. Let’s take a look.

Picture “1” shows the dead air space to avoid Picture “1” shows the dead air space to avoid. A smoke alarm shall be no closer then 4 inches to any meeting wall or ceiling. Picture “2” shows placement of the smoke alarm in the hall as well as optional ones in the bedrooms. (Pre: 1994) The one in the living room would only be needed if there were another bedroom to the left. Picture “3” shows three floor levels with an alarm on each level near the stairs. 1 2 3

********************** Pictures 4, 5, and 6 just show no matter the type of ceiling the alarm must go close to the top of the ceiling. ********************** Now turn to page three and read about areas to avoid. While you’re at it, if you can stay away from bathroom doors and kitchens you can help to reduce false activations. 4 5 6

False Alarms Good placement helps to reduce activations but not prevent them. All of the smoke alarms are equipped with a silence button. If the toast gets too toasty and triggers an activation, you can silence the alarm for up to eight minutes by simply pressing the test button. This is more then just a convenience. This feature as well as the ten year battery, prevents the need for climbing up on a chair or stool to remove or replace batteries.

Fire Escape Plan Make sure that the homeowner has a fire escape plan. If not, remind the homeowner of the importance of having one, and suggest that he/she create one immediately. With new smoke alarms and a fire escape plan, the family will be able to enjoy the all of the repairs and assistance you provided in a fire safe environment.

CAN WE FIND THEIR ADDRESS? 3 9 2 5 ● House numbers should be 5 inches in height and visible to the street. ● They can be on the house, on the mailbox or attached to a post that can be seen from the road,

Montgomery County Fire & Rescue Office of the Fire Chief 101 Monroe Street 12th floor Rockville MD 20850 (240) 777-2430