Lowe's Home Improvement has donated more than 30,000 smoke alarms to help with the State Fire Marshal's Operation Save-A-Life Program.
The announcement was made Friday at a press conference.
The donation came via St. Tammany Fire Protection District #1, which is the agency that was first approached by their local Lowe's in Slidell.
Lowe’s Home Improvement in partnership with First Alert/BRK are donating more than 34,000, 10-year lithium battery smoke alarms for the program, which is a public safety campaign run by the SFM in collaboration with local fire departments and districts to ensure fire protection in the homes of vulnerable residents. The initiative provides free installation of new smoke alarms.
This donation is the largest inventory boost in the program’s history. Since its inception in 2012, more than 120,000 alarms have been installed. This donation is 1/3 of that quantity which took more than a decade to obtain through grants, donations and limited agency funds.
“We are fortunate to have a partner in safety like Lowe’s and St. Tammany Fire Protection District #1 in Slidell,” said State Fire Marshal Chief Bryan Adams, “Smoke alarms save lives and this donation will help us further our efforts toward fewer home-fire deaths in Louisiana this cold weather season.”
“We know all too well that putting just one working smoke alarm into a home is too simple of a step toward saving multiple lives to not take a few minutes to either install one yourself or call us for helping in doing so,” said Fire Chief Chris Kaufmann, “We are so grateful to Lowe’s for helping us and the State Fire Marshal’s Office to be able to answer that call quickly with inventory in hand.”
The manager of the Slidell Lowe's also was at the conference.
“At Lowe’s, part of our core values is taking care of others,” said Slidell Store Manager John LeMaster. “Serving the communities that support us every day is our privilege as well as our responsibility.”
In addition to having working smoke alarms, the SFM also emphasizes the importance of having planned and practiced escape routes for your home that include knowing two ways out of every room.
Lastly, the SFM implores residents to use common sense when heating their homes this fall and winter season. Our top safe-heating tips include plugging space heaters directly into wall outlets, placing them at least 3-5 feet away from combustible and/or flammable objects and never leaving them unattended while powered on.
To register for a free smoke alarm, or learn more about Operation Save-A-Life, visit lasfm.org
