LIMA, OH (WLIO) - Love it or hate it, we spring our clocks forward this weekend, and it's also a reminder to check those smoke detectors.
As we change the time, the Lima Fire Department says it's a good habit to change the batteries in your smoke and carbon monoxide alarms. You should have a smoke detector on every floor of the home, and new building codes require one alarm per bedroom. Lima Fire Inspector Warren Pughsley says he pulls up to too many fires where a smoke alarm was there but didn't work. He says homeowners need to be testing them every month.
"We pull up on fires all the time and somebody says they didn't hear any warning and then we go in and there's no battery in the smoke alarm. That's what we tell kids when we're doing things with safety city or at their school go make sure somebody presses the button because that smoke alarm could be on the ceiling looking like it works but if someone has taken the battery out and forgot to put it back in, it's not going to operate," explained Warren Pughsley, inspector at the Lima Fire Department.
For those unable to buy or install smoke alarms, the American Red Cross "Home Fire Campaign" can help. The number to call is 844-207-4509.
