The American Red Cross asks everyone to help Sound the Alarm in Central Texas and be part of the nationwide Red Cross effort to help reduce the number of deaths and injuries caused by home fires.
The American Red Cross Serving Central Texas is holding a Sound the Alarm home fire safety and smoke alarm installation event on Saturday, September 23, 2017. Red Cross volunteers and local partners will be canvassing neighborhoods, installing free smoke alarms, replacing batteries in existing alarms and helping families create escape plans.
No prior training is necessary to volunteer. To sign up now as a volunteer at the September 23rd installation and education event visit redcross.org/soundthealarmAustin. For more information about the Home Fire Campaign and the nationwide Sound the Alarm event, visit soundthealarm.org.
“While we have done many smoke alarm installation events in the past, this one is different because we are trying to install 1,000 alarms in a single day in Austin, and our millionth smoke alarm nationwide since we launched this campaign in 2014,” said Marty McKellips, Chief Executive Officer for the American Red Cross, Central and South Texas Region.
Over the last 12 months, the American Red Cross Serving Central Texas has helped 368 families impacted by home fires. In fact home fires are the biggest disaster threat our community faces, killing seven people in this country every day.
The Red Cross responds to nearly 64,000 disasters a year, the majority of which are home fires. Working smoke alarms in a home cut the risk of death by half, and having an escape plan further improves the odds of survival. The Red Cross wants to end these tragedies and save lives, the reason why the organization launched the Home Fire Campaign in 2014.
Across the country, the Campaign is making a difference. As of May 31, 2017 the Red Cross and our partners across the country have saved at least 258 lives; reached 858,257 through youth preparedness programs; and installed 886,823 free smoke alarms. Here in Central Texas, the Red Cross has installed more than 1,200 alarms in the last 12 months.
Please join this important effort. Together, we can Sound the Alarm about fire safety and help save lives.
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 visit us on Twitter at @RedCross.
