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Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services Office of the Fire Marshal |
Ministère
de la Sécurité communautaire et des Services correctionnels
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| Place Nouveau
Building 7th Floor 5775 Yonge Street North York ON M2M 4J1 Telephone 416-325-3100 Facsimile: 416-325-3162 |
Édifice Place Nouveau |
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Time to change your clocks and the batteries in all smoke alarms
TORONTO (October 30, 2008) - Daylight savings ends on November 2nd and the Fire Marshal of Ontario is recommending Ontarians replace the old batteries in their smoke alarms when they change their clocks this weekend.
“In order for smoke alarms to do their job, they need to have working batteries,” explained Pat Burke, Fire Marshal of Ontario. “Once a year, old batteries should be replaced with new batteries. When you change your clocks this weekend, the fire service wants everyone to take the time to change the batteries in all smoke alarms.”
In order to survive a fire, you need to be provided with an early warning and know what to do when the smoke alarms sound. It’s the law to have working smoke alarms on every storey of the home and outside all sleeping areas. For added protection, it is recommended to also install smoke alarms inside all bedrooms.
“It is very concerning that 90 people have died in fires to date compared to 76 this time last year. Many of these deaths occurred in homes that were not equipped with working smoke alarms, ” said Burke. “That’s why it’s so important to change the batteries in all smoke alarms and ensure they are working at all times.”
Tampering with, or removing the batteries from your smoke alarms is against the law. Failure to comply with the Fire Code smoke alarm requirements can result in a ticket for $235 or a fine of up to $50,000.
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For more information, or to arrange an interview with the Fire Marshal, contact:
Gina Pontikas, Office of the Fire Marshal, (416) 325-3138
Bev Gilbert, Office of the Fire Marshal, (416) 325-3178
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