From left to right: Fire Prevention Officer Michael Roess, Interim Director of Public Works Chip Wilson, CAO Dwayne Evans, Luc Cormier with Enbridge, Reeve Paul Heffer, Councillor Lonnie Whitfield, Fire Chief Kent Readman, Councillor Anita van Hittersum, Councillor Ric McBurney, Treasurer Chris Townes, Fire Marshal’s Public Safety Council Jamie Kovacs. Photo supplied by Fire Department of North Huron. From left to right: Fire Prevention Officer Michael Roess, Interim Director of Public Works Chip Wilson, CAO Dwayne Evans, Luc Cormier with Enbridge, Reeve Paul Heffer, Councillor Lonnie Whitfield, Fire Chief Kent Readman, Councillor Anita van Hittersum, Councillor Ric McBurney, Treasurer Chris Townes, Fire Marshal’s Public Safety Council Jamie Kovacs. Photo supplied by Fire Department of North Huron.
Midwestern

North Huron receives 156 smoke/CO alarms to distribute around community

Enbridge Gas and the Fire Marshal’s Public Fire Safety Council (FMPFSC) have teamed up with the North Huron Fire Department for a project created to improve safety.

The Fire Department of North Huron received 156 combination smoke and carbon monoxide (CO) alarms through the Safe Community Project Zero, a public education campaign that will provide over 8,000 life-saving alarms to residents in 50 communities across Ontario.

"The objective of Safe Community Project Zero is to deliver combination smoke and carbon monoxide alarms to residents in Ontario communities who need them the most," said Ontario Fire Marshal (OFM) and Chair of the FMPFSC Jon Pegg. "It’s a program that fire departments can adopt to help educate their communities about the requirement for all Ontario homes to have a CO alarm if they have a fuel-burning appliance or an attached garage."

When properly installed and maintained, the combination alarms help provide early warning to residents so they can make a safe escape in the event of a house fire or carbon monoxide exposure. Carbon monoxide is a toxic, odourless gas that is a by-product of incomplete combustion of many types of common fuels.

According to the North Huron Fire Chief Kent Readman, there were 133 fire-related deaths in Ontario in 2022, the highest number seen in two decades.

"Many of these deaths could have been prevented if working smoke alarms were installed and working when the fires broke out," said Readman. "The Fire Department of North Huron is dedicated to educating and assisting our community members to prevent tragedies like this from happening here."

This year, Enbridge has invested $250,000 in Safe Community Project Zero. Over the past 14 years, the initiative has supplied more than 76,000 alarms to fire departments across the province.

More information about fire and carbon monoxide safety can be found on the Municipality of North Huron's website, or the Ontario Fire Marshal website.

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