COLUMBUS, Ohio — Daylight saving time begins at 2 a.m., Sunday, March 12, and serves as a perfect reminder to not only move your clocks ahead an hour, but also test your smoke alarms.

State Fire Marshal Kevin Reardon urges all Ohioans to check their home’s smoke alarms regularly and replace them when expired. “Smoke alarms are the first warning sign of a fire. These devices give you potentially lifesaving seconds to escape,” Reardon said. “Working smoke alarms save lives, cutting your risk of dying in a house fire in half.”

According to the State Fire Marshal’s Fire Prevention Bureau, along with making sure all smoke alarms have a fresh set of batteries, checking the expiration date is crucial in early fire detection. To find out how old a smoke alarm is, as well as its expiration date, simply look on the back of the alarm where the date of manufacture is marked. Smoke alarms should be replaced 10 years from the manufacture date. Any alarms with a manufacture date of 2013 or earlier should be replaced.

“I encourage everyone to take advantage of daylight saving time as a reminder to check their smoke alarms,” said Anita Metheny, Fire Prevention Bureau chief. “By taking these simple steps, we ensure early detection of a fire to escape quickly and safely.”

According to the National Fire Protection Association, smoke alarms that function correctly can reduce the risk of fatalities by nearly 50% in home fires. By taking a few minutes to check smoke alarms, families can significantly increase their chances of survival in case a fire breaks out.

Install smoke alarms on every level of the home, inside and outside of each sleeping area. Ohioans are also encouraged to develop an escape plan with two ways out of every room in the home. Make sure every family member knows what to do and where to meet outside if the smoke alarm sounds. Never go back into a burning building. Taking the time to practice two ways out is vital for knowing what to do in case of a real emergency. Coupled with good home fire safety, an escape plan will help make everyone safe in their homes in case of a fire.

Smoke alarms save lives but only if they are working properly. See additional fire prevention resources at the State Fire Marshal’s website: com.ohio.gov/fire.

Submitted by the Ohio Department of Commerce.