RENO, NV (September 12, 2019) - The Red Cross of Northern Nevada reminds all residents that September is National Preparedness Month, a time to prepare for any potential disasters, learn lifesaving skills and practical safety tips to reduce injury and death in your home and community.
One of the easiest ways to prepare is to make sure that your home has a working smoke alarm. Through its Home Fire Campaign, the Red Cross offers free smoke alarms and installation to all northern Nevada residents. This is a free service and there is no obligation. During the installation visit, Red Cross volunteers will also customize evacuation plans and share education information.
“Northern Nevada disaster volunteers have responded to a high number of home fires over the summer,” stated Zanny Marsh, executive director of the Northern Nevada Chapter. Since the beginning of July, they have assisted residents effected by a home fire roughly every two days. Our goal through the Home Fire Campaign is to help ensure that homes are made safer through the installation of a smoke alarm. By calling our hotline to request a smoke alarm, northern Nevadans are taking a big step towards a reduction in injuries, death and destruction of property.”
To request a free smoke alarm installation, contact the Red Cross of Northern Nevada at 775-954-1185. Pease leave name, address, zip code and phone number. Callers to the hotline will receive a return call within 48 hours.
According to the Red Cross, on a national level every day seven people are killed, and another 36 people suffer injuries because of home fires. Most of these deaths occur in homes that lack working smoke alarms. The smoke alarm program is part of the Home Fire Campaign, launched by the Red Cross in 2014, with the goal of reducing the number of home fire deaths and injuries by 25 percent.
Additional facts and statistics:
For more information on the Home Fire Campaign, visit Red Cross.org. To learn more about National Preparedness Month, visit Ready.Gov.
About the Northern Nevada Chapter:
The American Red Cross of Northern Nevada serves 13 counties and over 87,000 square miles. Its more than 200 volunteers respond to disasters both locally and nationally in addition to providing training on CPR and community preparedness. The chapter has served northern Nevada for more than 100 years. The American Red Cross of Northern Nevada receives generous support from the Parasol Tahoe Community Foundation.
About the American Red Cross:
The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies about 40 percent of the nation's blood; teaches skills that save lives; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a not-for-profit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or cruzrojaamericana.org, or visit us on Twitter at @RedCross.