Every day, an average of seven people die in home fires throughout the United States. Most of these deaths occur in homes without working smoke alarms. That’s why the American Red Cross, in partnership with Sutherlin Fire Department, will be holding a mass smoke alarm installation event in Sutherlin titled Sound the Alarm. The event, which will take place on April 28, aims to install 300 smoke alarms in homes that need them and is part of the nationwide Red Cross effort to install 100,000 lifesaving smoke alarms in homes across the United States and help reduce the number of deaths and injuries caused by home fires. Community members can sign up to volunteer at the event or request a free smoke alarm installation by visiting SoundtheAlarm.org.

WHAT: The local Red Cross and Sutherlin Fire are holding a mass Sound the Alarm home fire safety and smoke alarm installation event. Red Cross volunteers and local partners will be canvassing neighborhoods, installing free smoke alarms and helping families create fire escape plans.

WHERE: Sutherlin Senior Center, 202 E Central Ave., Sutherlin, OR 97479 (kick-off location)

WHEN: April 28, from 9 a.m. – 10 a.m. (kick-off and media location). People interested in volunteering to help or receiving a free smoke alarms may visit SoundtheAlarm.org.

WHO: Red Cross Regional Executive Candace Horter and Southwest Oregon Executive Director Carisa Hettich will be joined by Sutherlin Fire Chief Mike Lane and Deputy Chief Avery Hazzard to deliver remarks on the importance of the Sound the Alarm campaign and local home fire safety efforts. Sutherlin local Pauline Johnson (83) will share her story of how she survived a devastating home fire and was immediately helped by the Red Cross afterward.

Following the kickoff ceremony, free smoke alarm installations will take place until 4 p.m. by American Red Cross volunteer teams, community partners and Sutherlin Fire Department personnel. They will be installing 10-year lithium battery powered smoke alarms and delivering fire safety education. 

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The Red Cross responds to nearly 64,000 disasters each year, the majority of which are home fires. Working smoke alarms in a home cut the risk of death and injury in half, and having an escape plan further improves the odds of survival. Across the country, Red Cross efforts to end home fires are making a difference. As of April 2018, the Red Cross and our partners across the country have saved 381 lives, including five in Oregon, and have installed more than 1,103,000 free smoke alarms.
 

About the American Red Cross: The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies about 40 percent of the nation's blood; teaches skills that save lives; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a not-for-profit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org/Cascades or find us on Facebook at Red Cross Cascades, Twitter at @RedCrossCasc and on Instagram at @RedCrossCascades.