Westmont, Illinois
Date Issued: October 19, 2020
The Westmont Fire Department reminds residents that when you change your clock for daylight savings time on Sunday, November 1, then it is also time to change the batteries in all your smoke detectors.
The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) reports that between 2012 and 2016 three in five home fire deaths occurred in homes that either did not have smoke alarms or the alarms did not work. Almost half of the non-working smoke alarms either had missing or disconnected batteries. Dead batteries caused nearly a quarter of smoke alarm failures.
Illinois law requires every household to have smoke alarms within 15 feet of every bedroom and at least one alarm on each floor of the home.
The NFPA provides the following tips for installation and maintenance of smoke alarms
- Install alarms close to each sleeping area of the house and on every level of the house. Ensure that the alarms are interconnected so when one sounds, they all do
- Change alarm batteries at least twice a year. Daylight Savings Time is a reminder to “Change your Clock, Change your Batteries”
- Test alarms at least once a month
- Replace all smoke alarms when they are ten years old
- Closed doors may slow the spread of smoke
- Smoke alarms should be a part of a larger home escape plan for emergencies. Visit the NFPA website for more information on home escape planning
The Westmont Fire Department offers free smoke detectors for Wesmont residents of single family homes or townhomes who need them. For more information, please contact Chris Hardy at chardy@westmont.il.gov or 630-981-6424.
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Contact: Larry McIntyre
Village of Westmont
Communications Director/Public Information Officer
630-417-0280
lmcintyre@westmont.il.gov
