Daylight Savings Time begins this Sunday, March 10, and the Hartsville Fire Department is reminding Hartsville residents to change the batteries in their home smoke alarms while moving their clocks ahead one hour.Every year in the United States 2,600 deaths occur because of residential fires, many times from exposure to smoke and toxic gases, and just a few breaths of toxic smoke can render a person unconscious. Smoke detectors save lives and prevent injury by providing residents valuable time in escaping from a fire. Those who live in a home without working smoke detectors are twice as likely to die in a fire as those living in a home with working detectors.
Batteries in smoke detectors should be changed at least once a year, and changing clocks can provide a useful time to remember that smoke detector batteries need to be replaced. Most alarms should be replaced entirely after about 8 to 10 years.
For more information and tips about smoke detectors, visit the U.S. Fire Administration's website at https://www.usfa.fema.gov/citizens/focus/smoke_alarms.shtm
