NC Fire Marshal Organizes Statewide Smoke Alarm Canvass
"While the Office of State Fire Marshal has conducted many smoke alarm canvasses, we have never canvassed the entire state in one day with free smoke alarm installations," said Causey. "We want to educate as many people as possible and more importantly, provide them with smoke alarms and the resources they need to take extra precautions from home fires."
Citing the rising number of fire deaths in North Carolina, State Fire Marshal Mike Causey organized a team of firefighters and volunteers to be out in force on June 23 to conduct a smoke alarm canvass in local neighborhoods across the state. Causey also serves as the state's insurance commissioner.
They were scheduled to start at 9 a.m. as the Office of State Fire Marshal worked with the American Red Cross, Kidde, Nationwide Insurance, and dozens of fire departments statewide to install more than 3,300 smoke alarms in homes across North Carolina. Kidde donated 750 smoke alarms to the event.
"While the Office of State Fire Marshal has conducted many smoke alarm canvasses, we have never canvassed the entire state in one day with free smoke alarm installations," said Causey. "We want to educate as many people as possible and more importantly, provide them with smoke alarms and the resources they need to take extra precautions from home fires."
The OSFM organizers, American Red Cross volunteers, and fire department members checked homes for the presence of working smoke alarms and installed new ones where needed at no charge to the residents.
As of June 20, there have been 91 fire deaths in North Carolina this year, according to his office. In many of those incidents, there was no working smoke alarm present. During the entire year of 2017, 83 people died in North Carolina because of fire.