CHANGE YOUR CLOCK, CHANGE YOUR BATTERIES

It’s that TIME again

It’s that TIME again! On Sunday, March 8, 2009 at 2:00 a.m. marks the official Daylight Saving Time change when we’ll move our clocks forward one hour. Please change your clocks before you go to bed on Saturday evening.

It is very important for us in the fire service to pass along a lifesaving message: When you change your clock, change your batteries in your smoke alarms. The Shreveport Fire Department along with more than 6,000 other fire departments across the country participate in this program each year.

In 2008, there were seven fire-related deaths in our community, and working smoke alarms could have reduced that number. It is a known fact that working smoke alarms reduce the number of fire deaths and injuries.

The Shreveport Fire Department’s Fire Prevention Division makes the following recommendations:

• This weekend, purchase new and replace existing batteries for each of your smoke alarms!

• If you don’t have smoke alarms, install smoke alarms in every level of your home and test them once a month. It only takes a few seconds to test!

• Establish an escape plan and practice it monthly when you test your smoke alarms.

Change your clock and change your battery in your smoke alarms. It could save your life and the lives of your family!