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Show Dry year creates urgency Fire Prevention Week will stress early detection Activities for Fire Prevention Week this year, Oct. 9-15, will center cen-ter on one of the most basic fire-safety fire-safety behaviors detecting a fire earlier, thus reducing the risk of death. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) announced the official theme for Fire Prevention Preven-tion Week is, "A Sound You Can Live With... Test Your Smoke Detector." De-tector." The theme was chosen to "emphasize the importance of regular reg-ular testing and maintenance for smoke detectors," said NFPA Pres. Robert W. Grant. Since the early 1970s when smoke detectors first came on the market, three-quarters of the homes in America have been equipped with at least one of these devices. Clear evidence of their effectiveness in saving lives, coupled cou-pled with their low cost, made smoke detectors the fire safety success suc-cess story of the decade. However, it appears that the early ear-ly rapid growth in smoke detector use has slowed, leaving approximately approxi-mately one-quarter of homes still unprotected. Even more disturbing disturb-ing is evidence that in homes that do have these devices, one-third are not operational, most often due to dead or missing batteries. If this trend continues, NFPA predicts that one-half of America's home smoke detectors are likely to be non-operational within ten years. "Smoke detectors take good care of us by providing early warning warn-ing of a fire in the home, but only if we take good care of our detectors first," said Mr. Grant. "The steps are simple testing the detector signal, replacing batteries and keeping the unit free of dust and dirt but it is important to take these steps before a fire breaks out in your home." Studies have shown that the majority ma-jority of fatal fires in the home occur at night, when occupants are asleep, so early warning of a fire can and does save lives. In fact, smoke detectors cut the risk of dying in a home fire in half, and they can do even better if you have the right number of detectors for your home, properly installed, maintained and tested. Detectors are most effective if their early warning is accompanied by a home escape plan, practiced by every member of the family. NFPA will publish an official catalogue of Fire Prevention Week products which will be available in July, and NFPA will sponsor a poster contest for children grades K through 8. The posters will illustrate illus-trate the Fire Prevention Week theme and the grand prize will be a $100 U.S. Savings Bond. The poster post-er must be produced during the 1988-89 school year, and entries must be postmarked no later than Jan. 18, 1989. For details, please contact the Public Affairs Division at NFPA. Fire Prevention Week, first proclaimed by Pres. Warren G. Harding in 1922, commemorates the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. The Chicago Fire, in which 250 persons were killed, 100,000 were left homeless and more than 17,400 buildings were destroyed, focused national attention on the need for fire prevention. The NFPA is sponsoring Fire Prevention Week with the support of the fire service, schools and civic organizations across the United Un-ited States, drawing public attention atten-tion to the devastating effects of fire and the continued importance of fire prevention activities. Established in 1896, the NFPA is an international nonprofit association associa-tion with more than 44,000 members mem-bers worldwide. The NFPA, publisher pub-lisher of the "National Fire Codes" and the "Learn Not to Burn" public fire safety education program, also prepares many statistical sta-tistical reports on fire prevention and protection. NFPA headquarters headquar-ters are in Quincy, Massachusetts. |