THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – Friday, March 8, 2019 Page 5 Daylight Savings Time – check your alarms, too T he state fire marshal issues a reminder that there’s more to this weekend than just changing clocks. Daylight Savings Time begins this weekend. Everyone needs to set their clocks forward an hour before they go to bed tomorrow night (Saturday, March 9), as the time switch takes place officially at 2 a.m. on Sunday. But State Fire Marshal Peter Ostroskey urges homeowners and apartment tenants that it’s also time to take care of some potentially life-saving matters. “This weekend as you change your clocks, check your alarms,” Ostroskey said in a statement issued by his office this week. “Working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms can save your life. Replace aging alarms, and unless they have a 10-year sealed battery, replace the alkaline batteries now,” the state fire marshal said. Replace aging smoke alarms “Smoke alarms, like other household appliances, don’t last forever,” said Chief Timothy J. Grenno, president of the Fire Chiefs’ Association of Massachusetts, “Every 10 years the entire alarm needs to be replaced, not just the batteries,” he added. The state fire code requires replacement battery-operated smoke alarms to have 10-year, sealed, non-replaceable, nonrechargeable batteries in older one- and two-family homes. Manufacturers generally recommend smoke alarms be reOur 80th Year EDUCATION Next Classes DRIVER 2 Week Night Classes MARCH 18 One Week Day Class APRIL 15 School Vacation CALL - ENROLL or Register Online 617-387-9121 HENRYSAUTOSCHOOL.COM EVERETT AUTO SCHOOL “Successful Key To Driving” Since 1938 Gift Certificates Available * A Delta Dental Premier Provider Dr. Mario Abdennour, Dr. Bhavisha Patel, Dr. Priti Amlani, Dr. Bruce Goldman and team. placed after 10 years and carbon monoxide alarms after five to seven years. Newer models with 10-year sealed batteries are designed to last longer and do not require replacement batteries. “Fire officials see too many disabled smoke alarms in fires when people really needed them to work … We hope that if smoke alarms are easier to maintain, people won’t be tempted to disable them,” Chief Grenno said. Time is your enemy in a fire “Time is your enemy in a fire, and working smoke alarms give you precious time to use your home escape plan before poisonous gases and heat make escape impossible,” Ostroskey said. “Remember: Smoke alarms are a sound you can live with.” In the average house fire, there are only one to three minutes to escape after the smoke alarm sounds. “No one expects to be a victim of a fire, but the best way to survive one that does occur is to have working smoke alarms,” Grenno said. “Take a few minutes to protect those you love by changing the batteries in your smoke alarms this weekend. Then take a step stool and some 9-volts to your parents or older neighbor’s and ask if you can refresh their smoke alarms,” he said Senior SAFE Saugus is one of 242 fire departments across the state that have grant-funded Senior SAFE programs. Seniors who need help testing, maintaining or replacing smoke alarms should contact the Fire Department or the Saugus Senior Center for assistance. “Four out of every 10 of the people who have died in fires last year were over 65 … We want our seniors to be safe from fire in their own homes,” Ostroskey said. The $2,600 Senior Safe grant that Saugus received for the current fiscal year enables the Fire Department to provide fire and life safety education to the town’s elderly. Seniors have a high risk of dying in a fire. Fire and burns risks for seniors include cooking, smoking, home oxygen use, and electrical and heating dangers. Senior SAFE also aims to improve safety in senior housing. Programs include the following: • smoke and carbon monoxide alarm installation • testing and replacing batteries • installation of clearly displayed house street numbers • heating limiting devices on stoves • in-hood stove fire extinguishers Pickup/Delivery Available 781-289-6466 • night-lights Education is key to improving the safety of seniors at home. Senior SAFE creates partnerships between agenFollow us on Twitter advocatenewspaperma SNOW BLOWER SALES, SERVICE & REPAIRS cies that serve seniors and fire departments. Together, these agencies collaborate on local fire and life safety education programs. www.reverealuminumwindow.com
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