A public safety campaign will ensure more Sarnia residents have working fire and carbon monoxide (CO) alarms in their homes.
Enbridge Gas has provided the Sarnia Fire Department with 282 combination alarms through the Safe Community Project Zero campaign, held in partnership with the Fire Marshal’s Public Fire Safety Council.
"It's a public education campaign that will provide more than 14,500 alarms to residents in 75 communities across Ontario," said Enbridge Gas' Sarnia Operations Supervisor Robin Ellwood.
Fire Marshal’s Public Fire Safety Council Executive Director Jamie Kovacs stressed the importance of having working alarms in one's home.
"As a volunteer firefighter myself, I can tell you, it's shocking how many people don't have alarms, whether they're not functioning [or] they're expired and they think they're fine but they're actually well past their due date of 10 years," he said. "I've actually been on calls where people thought the alarms were working and they weren't. To be able to take alarms off of the trucks and give them to the people that maybe are financially struggling and can't afford the alarms, on behalf of Enbridge, is a pretty good feeling."
Sarnia Fire Chief Jeff Weber said the alarms will be distributed to where they're needed most within the city.
"We'll look at our demographics, our call volumes, where we're seeing a need," Weber said. "We measure every fire that we're at with... are there smoke alarms there? Are they in compliance? All those kinds of things and so we know the areas of the city that are challenged."
Weber also noted that the alarms are battery-powered and more suitable for older-style homes.
With the colder weather upon us and more households turning on the heat, Weber said it's a good time to check the batteries and expiration dates on fire and CO alarms.
"It's the cheapest insurance for your family's lives that you can buy," Weber said.
The alarms were officially delivered to the fire department on East Street Thursday morning.
Officials also stressed the importance of developing a family safety plan so everyone knows where to exit the home and where to meet.