Chad promotes smoke alarm and fire safety awareness campaign after Kirkby fatal blaze

A lifesaving smoke alarm and fire safety awareness campaign is being promoted by your Chad following the fatal house blaze at Kirkby and other fires.
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Your Chad has recently covered a number of fires across Mansfield and Ashfield, but the recent tragedy where a couple in their 60s lost their lives struck a chord.

The couple, who died when flames ripped through their home at the Homesteads, on Forster Street, just before 7pm on Saturday, January 29, have not been named, nor a cause of the fire released yet, pending a coroner’s report.

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Your Chad is backing Notinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service’s efforts to help promote and encouraging the fitting and regular ​checking of smoke alarms.

Fitting a smoke alarm - Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service urge people to check their smoke alarms regularlyFitting a smoke alarm - Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service urge people to check their smoke alarms regularly
Fitting a smoke alarm - Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service urge people to check their smoke alarms regularly

A few simple actions could make all the difference between life and death to our Mansfield and Ashfield Chad readers.

We’re helping to highlight the fire service web site’s fire safety advice, to help promote the service’s upcoming‘Test it Tuesday’ scheme, which is being launched in March, encouraging people to use and regularly test smoke alarms.

Top smoke alarm safety tips include always test smoke alarms at least once a month, make sure there is a working smoke alarm on every level of your home and NEVER ignore a beeping smoke alarm.

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Smoke alarm maintenance is also key, alarms beep intermittently they may need a new battery or replacing.

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The fire service advises having a working smoke alarm on every level of your home and hallways, between living and sleeping and to buy from a reputable DIY store. Refer yourself for a NFRS Safe and Well Visit, and firefighters will visit and fit them. See NFRS ‘Safe and Well’ page.

It also recommends fitting a 10-year sealed battery alarm, with the British Kitemark BSEN14604 : 2005 mark.

NFRS’s Andy Macey, group manager for prevention and fire investigation, said: “In March, we will be running a campaign to encourage people to test their smoke alarms.

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"It’s no good having smoke alarms on each level of your property if they’re not working. It’s vitally important that people test their smoke alarms every week.

"We encourage people to do that every Tuesday as ‘Test It Tuesday’ is easy to remember and people are more likely to be at home than, say, at the weekend.”

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