By Captain Jonathan Evans
One of the most important pieces of equipment in any home is the smoke alarm, but many in our community don’t understand how they work or how to maintain them, which means they may not work during an emergency. And for many people, a simple safety talk isn’t going to work because they don’t understand all the ins and outs of smoke alarm functionality and why it’s important to maintain them. It can also be a challenge to determine the best way to help your community members. Is the problem that they know how to fix it but don’t have the money to do so, or is it that they are older and just aren’t comfortable getting on the ladder to do the work? Either way, they need some help to stay safe, and it’s part of our job to make that happen. So, where do you start?
Bottom line: Use the data to help you plan an effective smoke alarm safety event.
Finding the right location
Hold the event in the neighborhood that needs the most help, as determined by call volume and a few other questions:
- What neighborhoods are having the most fire issues?
- Is there an area where you’re getting a lot of calls for help with the smoke alarms already?
- Is there a lower income area that may need additional resources?
- Is there an area that you know has a mostly older population that might have trouble with keeping up with their smoke alarms?
More than likely there will be several areas that will need assistance, but try to identify the best location to maximize reach. Then pick a day that works best to get into the neighborhood, and make sure you let them know you’re coming. Some neighborhoods may be more reluctant to let you into their homes, but if you get with the local influencers in that area, they can help ensure that you are well-received and that your efforts are successful. Speak with local church groups, civic groups, and community partners who are already involved in that community to determine the best way to spread the word.
Assembling the team
You can’t do this by yourself, so make sure you assemble a strong team to help you with the event.
The smoke alarms themselves, batteries and tools to install them can be expensive, but if you have the budget to purchase them, then the local hardware stores are usually happy to offer a deal. You can also solicit local businesses to help purchase these resources for you to save the department some money. Plus, in many places, the Red Cross has a stockpile of smoke alarms that they get through grants; they can be great partners to help sponsor and set up the event.
Once you’ve acquired the supplies, it’s time to expand the team. Partnering with the Red Cross can help find people to help with the event, as can your local civic groups (Kiwanis Club, Lions Club, Rotary Club, etc.).
It’s also important to get buy-in from the rest of the department as well; get your fellow firefighters involved! Also, make sure that you give everyone basic training on how to install the alarms so that they can install them properly and explain to the community members what they need to do to maintain the alarms.
Nothing to it but to do it
Once the location has been selected, the team has been assembled, and the supplies have been collected, there is nothing to it but to do it!
Meet at a dedicated command site, split your team into multiple smaller groups of 2 to 4 people, and then send them out into the neighborhood to start doing good. Make sure everyone understands the importance of staying together and that you’re keeping track of where everyone is for their safety. Crews should text or radio their address to the command center as they move through the neighborhood so that they can get the resources they need in case there is an emergency.
Once you make contact with a resident, make sure to explain in detail what you are doing and take this opportunity to give them safety information to help their family. Talk about evacuation plans, explain to them how to maintain their smoke alarms and why it’s important for them to do so, and give them a way to contact the department if they need help with anything else. These interactions can help build trust with not only the occupants of the home but also other community members once the word spreads that the fire department is there to help them. If no one is home or they don’t answer the door, make sure to leave a door hanger or some material at the door or in their mailbox so that they know how to reach out to you as well – and make a note to follow up with them later.
Once you’ve hit your target of homes, make sure to bring everyone together for a debriefing at the command site to see if there are insights that can help make an event like this better for next time.
Follow up with the community
After the event, make sure to follow up with community members to see if all their needs were met. Chances are that not every house in need was hit, as the residents may have been at work or weren’t available the day you came through, so devise a plan to follow up with these individuals. Also, by speaking with community members, you may have seen a need for some further education in other areas. For example, you may have identified the need for classes or meetings covering fire extinguishers or CPR, or even the need for a Neighborhood Watch Meeting to highlight information throughout the year. The better connected we are with our neighborhoods the easier it is for us to mitigate emergencies before they happen.
Most importantly, don’t stop here! Look for other neighborhoods that need help, and stay connected to other parts of the community too. Not every neighborhood will need the same resources, but they may need assistance from the department to change their batteries or alarms, so make sure that you don’t leave them out.
Remember that “Smoke Alarms Save Lives” so the more homes you have in your community that have good working smoke alarms, the safer your residents will be – and your firefighters, too.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Captain Jonathan Evans is an 18-year veteran of the Myrtle Beach (S.C.) Fire Department, currently working as a deputy fire marshal in charge of community outreach. Captain Evans started his career with MBFD in 2007. Evans has an associate in business with an emphasis on fire administration. Over the past 8 years, Evans has worked to create and improve community outreach programs and represents the department during speaking engagements, neighborhood watch meetings, and recruitment events. Evans is also a member of the MBFD Honor Guard and the Incident Management Team.