FAMILY ESCAPES FIRE UNHARMED THANKS TO CITY INSTALLED SMOKE DETECTORS

for more information:
Ernie Slottag 789-2235

Early on Tuesday morning, November 16^th, fire struck a home in the 2000 block of north 20^th street. Had it not been for operating smoke detectors that had been properly installed by the Springfield Fire Department, the outcome of the fire could have been tragic.

Nicole Evans, her boyfriend, Gregory, and her daughter, Lydia, all escaped unharmed after smoke detectors alerted them to the presence of smoke coming from their registers. When flames were seen coming from the top of the furnace, Nicole dialed 911, grabbed her daughter and all three escaped unharmed.

“We are glad that this story has a happy ending,” said Mayor Tim Davlin. “Too often we learn that people suffer injuries or worse because the batteries are dead in their smoke detectors, or they have no batteries in them at all.”

“This scenario clearly reminds all of us that we should have fully functioning smoke detectors on all floors of our homes.”

The Springfield Fire Department, through the use of grant monies and donations, has a number of safety programs available to the public. Once such program is “Remembering When” for senior citizens, to help older adults live safely at home as long as possible. The department also maintains a smoke detector program for low income families and seniors and will actually install them. For more information about these and other programs, contact the Springfield Fire Safety office at 788-2170.

This is the first known incident in which smoke detectors installed by the Springfield Fire Department have saved lives.