Louisiana City Using Grant for Home Fire Safety Devices

The Baker Fire Department is using a federal grant for an ambitious fire safety project – outfitting every home in the Louisiana city with a fire extinguisher and combination smoke and carbon monoxide detector.

Fire Chief Danny Edwards tells The Advocate he applied for a Federal Emergency Management Agency Fire Prevention and Safety Grant in January and found out the agency was awarded $115,000 for the project in September.

City officials say they ordered 3,000 fire extinguishers and 3,000 of the combination detectors.

The city of Baker has a population of just under 15,000 with close to 5,000 households.

“It’s going to be a lot of work. It will probably take anywhere from three to six months to complete,” Edwards said.

The ultimate goal is to have every home in the city outfitted with a fire extinguisher and smoke and carbon monoxide detector by no later than September 2014, Edwards said.

The department plans a marketing campaign to get the word out including an open house meeting at the main fire station on Groom Road to kick it off and then some town hall meetings, Edwards said.

Edwards said the Baker Council on Aging as well as the five members of the Baker City Council will forward the names of some residents who need the devices.

The plan also entails going to door to door to install the devices.

Data shows that working smoke detectors saves lives.

State Fire Marshal Butch Browning called the plan “ambitious

Browning said his agency works between 85 and 100 fatal fires in Louisiana each year. He said 80 percent of them involve the lack of a working smoke detector.