Red Cross asks you to TEST your smoke alarms as you TURN your clocks back this weekend

Daylight saving time ends on Sunday, November 2 and the American Red Cross encourages everyone to test their smoke alarms as they turn their clocks back to make sure the devices are working.

Over the past year, local Red Cross volunteers helped more than 237,000 people affected by over 55,000 home fires, which account for most of the about 65,000 disasters the Red Cross responds to each year across the country.

SMOKE ALARMS When turning your clocks back this weekend, test your smoke alarms and replace the batteries if needed. Visit redcross.org/fire for more information, including an escape plan to create and practice with your family, or download the free Red Cross Emergency app by searching “American Red Cross” in app stores.

• Install smoke alarms on every level of your home, including inside and outside bedrooms and sleeping areas.
• Replace smoke alarms that are 10 years or older. Components such as sensors can become less sensitive over time. Follow your alarm’s manufacturer instructions.
• Practice your two-minute home fire escape plan. Make sure everyone in your household can get out in less than two minutes — the amount of time you may have to escape 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 can meet.  

HOME FIRE CAMPAIGN SAVES LIVES Since October 2014, the Red Cross Home Fire Campaign, working with community partners, has saved at least 2,284 lives by educating families about fire safety, helping them create escape plans and installing free smoke alarms in high-risk areas across the country. To learn more about the campaign and how you can get involved, visit redcross.org/homefires.

THANK YOU TO OUR GENEROUS SPONSOR State Farm® is the National Sound the Alarm Sponsor. Their funding helps our efforts to build safer, stronger, better-educated communities. For decades, State Farm has teamed up with the Red Cross in support of home safety, disaster preparedness and relief efforts. State Farm is committed to helping individuals and families manage everyday risks like home fires by sponsoring Sound the Alarm.