It’s Fire Prevention Week.

The province says this year’s theme is Smoke Alarms: Make Them Work for You, with a reminder to make sure your smoke alarm is working properly.

They say over the last three years, 24 per cent of deaths happened in homes without smoke alarms or ones that were not working properly.

For another 24 per cent of deaths, it could not be determined if they had smoke alarms and whether they were working as they should.

Nova Scotia’s Fire Marshal, Doug MacKenzie says, things can happen fast.

“Smoke spreads quickly when there is a fire. Once an alarm sounds, you may only have a few minutes to get yourself, your family and pets out safely. Ensuring you have smoke alarms that work can give you a critical early warning to get outside quickly.”

Tips for choosing and installing smoke alarms:
– install smoke alarms in every bedroom, outside each separate sleeping area (like a hallway) and on each level of the home, including the basement
– when installing an alarm, follow the instructions that come with it
– place the smoke alarm on the ceiling or high on a wall
– if someone in the home is hard of hearing or deaf, use a special alarm with strobe lights and bed shakers.

Tips to make sure smoke alarms are working:
– test smoke alarms at least once a month by pushing the test button
– if an alarm chirps, replace the smoke alarm or the batteries in it, depending on the type of smoke alarm:
– for smoke alarms with lifelong batteries that are designed to stay effective for up to 10 years, replace the entire alarm immediately
– for smoke alarms that require new batteries at least once a year, replace the batteries immediately.

The province adds, all smoke alarms should be replaced when they are ten years old or when they stop responding when tested.

According to the National Fire Protection Association, working smoke alarms reduce fire deaths by 54 per cent