It's Fire Safety Month and with Kidde we want to discuss fire prevention. "Safety is not the same for everyone," Kidde explains on their website and so through their Cause For Alarm initiative, they want to raise awareness of fire and carbon monoxide safety.
Ivanette Bonilla from Kidde says “we’ve learned that the reality is safety is not the same for everyone. There are different factors like socioeconomic situation, age, or even ability, um, that make some communities more vulnerable to house fires than others. And the cost for ALARM program is centered around supporting communities who are at a higher risk of fire related incidents, but also in general to raise awareness of the importance of fire safety and the importance of safety products.
Just like the smoke alarms that we were talking about, the carbon monoxide alarms keep everyone safe. So, the cause for alarm effort is really a fire safety awareness initiative that is intended to address fire safety gaps and raise awareness of the important information that we're speaking about today. So we want to be able to provide all communities with this necessary support and access to educational resources and product solutions needed to keep themselves safe and protect their homes.
The fact is your ability to feel safe and protected at home shouldn't really depend on who you are, where you live. But as you were just saying, the reality is some communities are at a higher risk. And for example, just that the beginning of this year, there were two major residential fires within days of each other in January, one in Philadelphia and one in the Bronx where multiple people, you know, died and were impacted by it. Um, they were both in predominantly black and immigrant communities. And there's a statistic that actually the black community has the highest rate of fire related deaths and injuries in the country. They have nearly twice the overall death rate and more than twice the overall injury rate. There are about 2,400 fire related deaths each year. And while African Americans represent 13% of the population, they account for 24% of home fire deaths and 27% of injuries. So all of this is alarming, and that's what really has driven us to raise awareness of the issue and, and sound the alarm with cause for alarm. So we really want to drive equity into fire safety and make sure everyone is safe.
FDNY Captain Michael Kozo joins us to talk all about building a fire escape plan with your family. "It's all built around planning an escape with your family," says Kozo, "You know, we go into schools all the time and, and we ask the children in the schools if they know how to get out of their school, if the fire alarm goes off, if the, uh, if the bell goes off. And of course, they all know exactly what to do, right?" However Kozo says when, "you ask them the same question at home, if your smoke alarm goes off, do you know what to do?... We get that blank stare." Kozo really wants everyone to create an escape plan with everybody in the family. You should always know what to do when the fire alarm goes off. "You know where to go and where your exits are."
If there was one thing that Kozo would recommend for people listening or reading, "I would say to ensure that you have and maintain working smoke alarms." Kozo explains, "You wanna make sure that you have a combination smoke and carbon monoxide alarm on every level of your home, as well as a smoke only alarm in every bedroom," he continues, "That will ensure that you will have proper warning and an early warning where you and your family will be able to get out safe."
Kidde wants to ensure that everyone has a safe and healthy home. Click here to learn more about how you can prepare your family and home for a fire emergency.