In today’s fast-paced world, we often forget to stop and do the small things in life that matter most. On November 1, Energizer and the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) are teaming up on the Change Your Clock Change Your Battery® program to remind families of a simple task that could make the difference in surviving a home fire. Having a working smoke alarm doubles a families chances of escaping, thus surviving a home fire*, but only if it works. This campaign encourages families to take action in preventing accidental deaths caused by home fires and carbon monoxide by changing the batteries in smoke alarms and COdetectors.
Serving as a reminder for 22 years, the Change Your Clock Change Your Battery program now incorporates more than 6,200 fire departments nationwide to encourage families to use Daylight-Saving Time as a reminder to change the batteries in their smoke alarms when changing their clocks back to Standard Time.
“Unfortunately, changing the batteries in smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors is not always top of mind for families,” says Chief Jeffrey D. Johnson, EFO, CFO, president of the International Association of Fire Chiefs. “In fact, while 96 percent of American homes do have smoke alarms, the sad truth is that 19 percent of these do not work due to worn out or missing batteries. So, hundreds of fatalities occur every year from a simple over-sight. The habit of changing batteries during Daylight-Saving Time is an easy task that can be the difference between life and death.”
The National Fire Protection Association reports that a home fire death occurs somewhere in the nation approximately every three (3) hours. In fact, home fires kill 540 children, 14 years old and under, each year.*
Having a working smoke alarm can provide those crucial extra seconds to escape a burning home. Therefore, it is critical for families to adopt the life-saving habit of the Change Your Clock Change Your Battery®program to make sure they take this one simple step to help keep their families safe.
