801 Crockett Street, Shreveport, Louisiana 71101
318/ 673-6655 ● FAX: 318/ 673-6656 ● www.shreveportfire.org

Kelvin J. Cochran, Fire Chief

April 5, 2002

PRESS RELEASE
To: Newsroom
For Immediate Release
Contact: Brian A. Crawford, Public Information Officer
Phone: 673-6652, cell: 455-2609, page: 675-2137

It’s Time To Change Smoke Alarm Batteries

"Change Your Clock, Change Your Battery"

As the Spring time change approaches, the Shreveport Fire Department wants to remind residence to make another change that could save their lives - changing the batteries in their smoke alarms.

An average of three children a day die in home fires and 82 percent of those occur in homes without working smoke alarms. Non-working smoke alarms rob residence of the protective benefits home fire safety devices were designed to provide. The most commonly sited cause of non-working smoke alarms: worn out or missing batteries.

Changing smoke alarm batteries at least once a year is one of the simplest, most effective ways to reduce these tragic deaths and injuries. In fact, working smoke alarms nearly cut in half the risk of dying in a home fire.

To save lives and prevent needless injuries in Shreveport, the fire department has joined forces with the International Association of Fire Chiefs and Energizer brand batteries for the "Change Your Clock, Change Your Battery" campaign. The program urges all Americans to adopt a simple, lifesaving habit: change smoke alarm batteries when changing clocks each Spring and Fall.

In addition, Fire Chief Kelvin Cochran recommends that residents test smoke alarms by pushing the test button, planning "two ways out" of a residence in the event of a fire, and practicing fire escape routes with the entire family. ###