Firefighters And Red Cross Volunteers Install Free Smoke Alarms

Chattanooga firefighters and volunteers with the American Red Cross teamed up Saturday morning to install free smoke alarms and batteries in Lookout Valley homes. Fire Marshal Beau Matlock said the teams walked door-to-door, and within the span of about two hours, installed 56 smoke alarms and put 20 fresh batteries in smoke alarms that needed them.

This event coincides with the time you change your clocks back one hour to Eastern Standard Time. Chief Matlock said that's a good time to put fresh batteries in your smoke alarms. "Your smoke alarms are your first line of defense if a fire breaks out in your home," he said. "Make sure they have fresh batteries, and also check the dates on the smoke alarms. If any of them are 10 years old or older, they should be replaced." 

Any Chattanooga residents who cannot afford to purchase their own smoke alarms can get one for free by calling the Chattanooga Fire Department at 643-5600 during regular business hours.