It’s a small nine volt battery that plays a big role in saving lives.
That’s why every year, around April Fool’s Day, the Queensland Fire and Rescue Service (QFRS) teams up with Duracell to remind residents to replace their smoke alarm batteries.
In 2012, the QFRS attended 57 residential fires where smoke alarms failed to operate and alert residents of the impending danger.
This equated to more than one fire every week.
QFRS Inspector David Sutch said a number of factors contributed to the trend, including batteries being removed, alarms being disconnected and batteries being incorrectly installed.
“Last year, 11 lives were tragically lost in Queensland as a result of house fires and a further 51 the year before,” Mr Sutch said.
“These figures are concern-ing and imply that residents are not taking the risks of a faulty smoke alarm seriously.”
Inspector Sutch said the statistics reinforced the importance of working smoke alarms in Queensland households and encouraged residents to use the annual “Don’t be a Fool” campaign as an opportunity to protect themselves and their families.
“April 1 is an easy date to remember and we encourage all Queenslanders to take preventative actions by changing their smoke alarm batteries, for their own safety and the safety of their loved ones,” he said.
“It takes less than five minutes to change a smoke alarm battery, which is time well spent, when it could result in a potential life being saved.”
QFRS recommends the use of photoelectric smoke alarms and warns that not changing smoke alarm batteries and failing to maintain smoke alarms can be just as deadly as not having one at all.
