Saturday, the 10th of December, marked the annual Smoke Alarm Blitz. This event saw the Statesboro Fire Department partner with Red Cross and spread throughout Statesboro to hand out fire alarms to citizens of Statesboro to help promote fire safety for the citizens of Statesboro.
"The whole point of it is to keep the citizens safe," said Stephen Hutchins, the fire prevention chief of Statesboro. "Over the data that's collected throughout the united states, it shows that a large amount or pretty much you could say the majority of deaths in a fire come from residences that do not have a smoke alarm. So [Red Cross] has a program where they provide the smoke alarms, and we run the manpower."
The tradition began in 2019 for the SFP before taking a break in early 2020 once COVID hit to avoid putting anyone at risk.
The fire alarms were given to Statesboro citizens and offered to be installed for free.
"I think it's important to know that outside of events like this, we will still go into homes if somebody wants to reach out to the fire department and install the smoke alarm," Jim Griffith, disaster program manager for Red Cross, said. "We partner with the fire department to provide those alarms and the other material that comes with it; they just have to reach out to the chief here and say, 'hey, can you come to our house and install the fire alarm and go out there and do it."
These alarms were given to those who may not have any installed and to those who may have out-of-date fire alarms.
"These things have a 10-year lifespan," said Hutchins. "So if that's the case, we replace it. Put the old one down and the new one up."
Contact SFD for your free fire alarm installation
The fire department currently hopes to do as many of these fire alarm handouts as possible. And even though the event is over, citizens can still reach out to the Statesboro Fire Department and ask for fire alarm installations free of charge. You can reach the department at [email protected] or at 912-764-3473.
Alongside this, the fire department is constantly at work, ensuring the community is provided with sufficient fire safety education. Some of these plans include going to schools to perform 'stop, drop, and roll' drills or working with Statesboro colleges in various ways to help get that message of safety across.
"We actually measure at the Red Cross; we measure it as Homes Made Safe," Griffith said. "That's our goal. To get out there and educate people before something bad happens, and keep something bad from happening."
Volunteer opportunities available
Red Cross and the Statesboro Fire Department both have volunteer opportunities, even for those without much experience. For the Red Cross, volunteers can participate in all kinds of physical services, such as disaster services or biomedical support. Volunteer opportunities can be pursued on the website. If you do not have the time to volunteer but still want to show your support, always remember that the Red Cross is 100% funded by donations. Any donation can go a long way. Donations can also be made on the website.
The Statesboro Fire Department also has volunteer opportunities but not necessarily for the firefighting division. The Citizen's Assistance and Fire Emergency (CAFE) unit is an auxiliary group that serves as the bridge between the fire department and the Red Cross. This group serves as an aid for victims of a house fire who temporarily may not have anywhere to go and give them some form of comfort while their living arrangements are being made. This volunteer opportunity and others can be found here.
In conjunction with the Statesboro Police Department, the Statesboro Fire Department will host a Christmas movie night on December 19. Click here for more information!
