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NYS Smoke Detector Law Starts April First NYS Smoke Detector Law Starts April First

By Taylor Lang

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A new law starting April first will save the lives of people across New York State.
The National Fire Protection Association says more than half of deadly fires could have been prevented if there had been working smoke detectors in the those homes.

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N-C-C News Reporter Taylor Lang is outside the fire station that responded to the latest deadly fire in Syracuse on Shuart Avenue to tell us how it could have been avoided.
Taylor?

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Thanks guys.
Behind me is the fire station where two weeks ago the doors rolled up and a truck drove out to put out a fire less than two blocks away.
Firemen battled the flames, but 58-year-old James Sauta died from his injuries.
But these two batteries in my hand could have saved his life.
There were no working smoke detectors in his home.
This is the kind of tragedy lawmakers and firefighters are hoping to avoid with the new smoke detector law starting April 1st.

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(***SOT***) (Neighbor Salah Winslow)
I am surprised he didn’t have it. I mean, who doesn’t have smoke detectors.
(***VO1***)
Winslow lives directly next door from the man who died in a house fire last week.
She says knowing he could have survived if he had smoke detectors makes her thankful her own are working.
She remembers the night of the fire very well.
(***SOT***)
I heard them because they were so close. And then I realized they stopped when they usually keep going. And then my husband goes there is a fire nextdoor. But I heard the trucks first. It was really bad.
(***VO2***)
New York State Lawmakers are trying to prevent these deaths through a new smoke detector law.
The law makes it so that any smoke detector bought after April first will have non-removable batteries that last more than ten years.
The Syracuse Deputy Fire Chief says this law will help every household in Syracuse stay prepared for the worst.
(***SOT***) (Syracuse Deputy Fire Chief Elton Davis)
We remove the occurrence of people taking batteries out of fire alarms – out of smoke detectors in their homes now.
(***VO3***)
The National Fire Protection Association says 26 percent of reported fire damage and death between 2012 and 2016 was because of the absence of smoke alarms.
Winslow says it is heartbreaking when injuries and deaths could be avoided.
(***SOT***)
I can’t explain the feeling. For such a simple device that can be put in the home and not have someone be alerted – it’s devastating.

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Again – you do not have to buy new smoke alarms if you already have working ones in your home.
But if you do need one – it is ten dollars for ten years of safety.
Reporting live from Shuart Avenue in Syracuse, Taylor Lang, N-C-C News

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Thanks Taylor.
If you cannot afford a smoke detector and live in the city of Syracuse, you can contact the Syracuse Fire Department and they will install them for you free of charge.

SYRACUSE, N.Y. (NCC News) – A new law starting April first will require smoke detectors sold in stores to have non-removable batteries that last ten years.

More than half of deadly fires in the United States can be prevented with smoke detectors, according to the National Fire Protection Association.

Syracuse Deputy Fire Chief Elton Davis said the percentage is about the same for the Central New York area. He believes this law will prevent tragic deaths.

“We remove the occurrence of people taking batteries out of fire alarms and out of smoke detectors in their homes now,” Davis said. “Sometimes people take the batteries out of the alarms near the kitchen or forget to put new batteries back in.”

 

A price sticker for a smoke detector on a shelf.
The price of the new smoke detectors range from $10-$20.
© 2019 Taylor Lang

Home owners who have working smoke detectors do not have to buy new ones. The law only affects retailers and people buying new alarms. The new smoke detectors are priced at $10-$15.

As part of a fire prevention program, any member of the city of Syracuse that cannot afford a smoke detector can call the Syracuse Fire Department. Firefighters will come and install new alarms in homes that need them free of charge.

James Sauta, 58, died in a fire in his home on Shuart Avenue in Syracuse. There were no working smoke detectors in the building, according to fire officials.

 

A house with fire damage on Shuart Ave. in Syracuse.
James Sauta, 58, died on Shuart Avenue from fire injuries.
© 2019 Taylor Lang

Sauta’s neighbor was confused when she found out his death could have been prevented.

“I am surprised he didn’t have it,” Salah Winslow said. “I mean, who doesn’t have smoke detectors?”

The firefighters who put out the flames were from less than two blocks away at Fire Station Nine on Shuart Avenue. Sauta was found unconscious on the second floor of his house, according to fire officials.

 

Fire Station Nine on Shuart Ave. in Syracuse.
Fire Station Nine responded to the deadly house fire on Shuart Ave.
© 2019 Taylor Lang

Twenty-six percent of reported fire damage and death between 2012 and 2016 was because of the absence of smoke alarms, according to the National Fire Protection Association. Seven percent of fire damage and death in the same time period happened because of smoke detectors that did not work.

 

Pie chart.
About 26 percent of deaths and house damage between 2012 and 2016 was because there were no working smoke detectors at the scene.
© 2019 Taylor Lang

“I can’t explain the feeling,” Davis said. “For such a simple device that can be put in the home and not have someone be alerted – it’s devastating.”

 

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