Victoria’s fire services have issued an urgent smoke alarm warning following the release of a report which found an increase in the number of Victorians who died in house fires.
In a statement, Fire Rescue Victoria (FRV) said data from the Country Fire Authority (CFA) and FRV revealed 22 people died in preventable house fires last year, up from 16 in 2019, and above the long-term annual average of 18.
“The majority of the fires started at night, between 9pm and 6am, with 72 per cent starting in living areas and bedrooms,” FRV said.
“Of note, half of the 18 properties where the fires broke out did not have working smoke alarms,” it said.
FRV said the tragic deaths reinforced CFA and FRV firefighters’ recommendation to install interconnected smoke alarms in all bedrooms, living areas and hallways.
Chief Officer of the CFA, Jason Heffernan said installing interconnected smoke alarms would ensure that when any alarm activated, all smoke alarms in the home would sound.
“There is a clear increase in fatal fire risk in the rooms where people sleep and rest, with our data showing that, over the past decade, fatal fires have most commonly started in bedrooms and living areas,” Chief Officer Heffernan said.
He said only one-in-five Victorians had a smoke alarm in any bedroom and around 60 per cent had a smoke alarm in living areas.
Acting Commissioner of FRV, Ken Brown said the heartbreaking and preventable deaths demonstrated why it was so important for people to have working smoke alarms in their homes.
“Working smoke alarms offer you the best chance of surviving a fire and without one your risk of dying in a house fire dramatically increases,” Acting Commissioner Brown said.
“We know most fatal fires start at night and the smell of smoke will not wake you up, so it is crucial you have smoke alarms in all bedrooms, living areas and hallways,” he said.
Further information on smoke alarms can be accessed on FRV’s website at this PS News link.
