HSHS St. Francis Hospital issued the following announcement on Dec. 10.
Litchfield Fire Department and HSHS St. Francis Hospital partner to provide smoke alarms and Fire Prevention Education through "Be Alarmed!" Program.
The Litchfield Fire Department is working cooperatively with the nonprofit Illinois Fire Safety Alliance (IFSA), Office of the State Fire Marshal and HSHS St. Francis Hospital to provide no-cost smoke alarms to residents of Litchfield.
The Be Alarmed! Smoke Alarm Installation program provides smoke alarms and fire prevention materials to Illinois fire departments to both educate residents on fire safety as well as to provide them with life-saving devices in their home.
“Smoke alarms are the most effective early warning device there is,” says Litchfield Fire Chief Joseph Holomy “By merely having a working smoke alarm in your home, it reduces your chance of dying in a reported fire in half.”
The IFSA program was developed to educate residents on the dangers of fire, how to prevent fire from occurring in the home and to ensure there are working smoke alarms properly installed in homes. Residents receive installation of a 10-year concealed battery smoke alarms which ensures that the power source cannot be removed from the unit and, if properly maintained, will last the life of the device. Additional smoke alarm informational pamphlets, home fire safety checklists, and home fire escape plans will also be provided.
COVID-19 safety precautions are currently taken for each home installation.
Firefighter Mike Chappell applied for the program and leads it for the Litchfield Fire Department. “Our goal is to make sure residents have the protection of a smoke alarm and reduce the number of fire-related injuries and deaths,” Chappell says. “Because smoke alarms alone won’t prevent every fire death, the program includes educating residents on how to create a home fire escape plan, so they know what to do if their smoke alarm sounds.”
“St. Francis Hospital is very proud to collaborate with the Litchfield Fire Department on this new safety program,” said Jim Timpe, St. Francis president and CEO. “By providing information to patients at discharge from the hospital, we hope to further identify and support at-risk homes in our community and connect them to the fire department and this program’s resources.”
Residents who wish to receive more information about the Litchfield Fire Department’s smoke alarm installation program should contact the department at 217-324-8171 or email mikedchappell@hotmail.com.
At this time, the smoke detector, installation and education are ONLY available to Litchfield residents but residents who live elsewhere can still contact the Litchfield Fire Department to be directed to their respective fire departments.
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