Smoke Alarms

Are you in compliance with Maryland’s Smoke Alarm Law? A new state law aimed at reducing home fire deaths went into effect on July 1, 2013. It requires replacement of any battery-only-operated smoke alarm that is more than 10 years old with a unit powered by a long-life, 10-year sealed-in battery by January, 2019. Smoke alarm technology has advanced over the years and the 2013 update to Maryland’s Smoke Alarm Law also requires that residential battery-operated smoke alarms be equipped with a “hush-button” feature that would temporarily silence the alarm if activated by a non-emergency condition. The Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service knows that smoke alarms save lives, that’s why MCFRS offers free home smoke alarm installation and safety checks to Montgomery County residents. Read more about it below.

Prevention Tips for the Most Common Types of Fires

If you think for a minute you can probably come up with the most common activities and practices that could lead to an unintentional fire. We hope that you’ll take a few minutes to review the steps to prevent them. What we are all learning this summer is that most safety hazards that we encounter throughout the year are within our control to prevent. Oh, did you want to know the most common types of fires? Just read the links below.

MCFRS Prevention Tips

Tips from FEMA’s Ready.Gov

Fire Rescue 1 offer tips on the 4 most common types of fires

Proper Child Safety Seat Installation

One of the many safety goals of the MCFRS is to ensure that the children of Montgomery County are properly secured in car seats and seat belts while traveling. Research has found that motor vehicle crashes are the leading killer of children less than 15 years of age. MCFRS and the SAFE KIDS Montgomery County organization sponsor child safety seat inspection stations. Because of the high demand for this service, the Montgomery County Car Seat Inspection Stations are for Montgomery County residents only. Non-county residents are welcome to participate in Fitzgerald Auto Mall's monthly (no appointment needed) seat check in Rockville. Call Montgomery County's Child Passenger Safety Hotline, 240-777-2222 to get the next date and phone numbers for other inspection sites.