Daylight Saving Time (3/10 at 2 a.m.) is fast approaching. And, in addition to changing your clocks, there is a "holiday" that coincides with Daylight Saving Time--it's Check Your Batteries Day, which happens on the second Sunday of March every year. No, it's not a day to remember to change the TV remote batteries (however, you can do that, too), it's a day to check to make sure those smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors are working.

Because Check Your Batteries Day is designed to help you stay safe by reminding you to check one of the most important safety features in your house--your smoke detector,--here are some facts about smoke alarms from the National Fire Prevention Associate (NFPA).

  • "Smoke alarms cut the risk of dying in a reported fire in half.
  • Overall, three-quarters of all U.S. homes have at least one working smoke alarm.
  • In more than half of the reported home fires in which the smoke alarms were present but did not operate even though the fire was large enough, batteries were missing or disconnected. Nuisance alarms were the leading reason for disconnected alarms.
  • More than half of the smoke alarms found in reported fires and two-thirds of the alarms found in homes with fire deaths were powered by battery only.
  • In fires considered large enough to activate a smoke alarm, hard-wired alarms operated 91% of the time; battery-powered smoke alarms operated 75% of the time."
For more "Fast Facts About Smoke Alarms And Fire" from the NFPA, click here.
Don't forget to "spring ahead" when changing your clocks, and make sure you check those batteries.
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Flickr.com, Creative Commons License
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