Posted by: Kim_Hamilton on 01/16/2011 09:10 PM
Updated by: Kim_Hamilton on 01/16/2011 09:10 PM
Expires: 01/01/2016 12:00 AM
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Fire Safety Tips Reach Thousands
Washington, DC.... During the upcoming Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday, Red Cross volunteers will be canvassing neighborhoods, talking to people about how to prevent home fires and how to escape safely should a fire occur. In cities from Austin, Texas, to Worcester, Massachusetts, volunteers will commemorate The Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King’s call to serve by teaching others in their communities about fire safety. The initiative takes place in the dead of winter, the time of the year when the most home fires occur......
“Volunteers will be encouraging people to think about safety as they cook and as they heat their homes,” said Jerry DeFrancisco, president of American Red Cross Humanitarian Services. “We’ll also be talking about the value of smoke alarms and the need to create and practice a fire escape plan.”
Home fires are America’s biggest disaster threat. Yet, most are preventable. So, the Red Cross is committed to helping people understand fire safety through conversations and materials printed in both English and Spanish.
This is the fourth year the American Red Cross has celebrated the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday with a fire safety project. In the past three years, volunteers from the American Red Cross and partner HOPE worldwide have provided fire safety information to more than a quarter of a million households. During the 2011 MLK Day of Service volunteers will canvass thousands of additional households in 67 U.S. cities.
Every day the American Red Cross helps people affected by more than 170 home fires, providing food, shelter, comfort and hope. More than 90 percent of the disasters the Red Cross responds to each year are fire related.
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