Fire Starts During Annual Smoke Detector Warning Officials Urge People To Check Batteries While Changing Clocks

The north Spokane fire that killed four children Saturday came on the weekend when fire officials annually urge people to check their smoke detectors.

The campaign to make sure smoke detectors work and have fresh batteries coincides with the switch to daylight-saving time.

A working smoke detector may have helped save the lives of the children killed Saturday, said Garry Miller, city fire marshal.

The reason fires often kill the very young and the elderly is that they need more time to leave a burning home. They easily become disoriented.

Saturday’s blaze was no exception.

Investigators think the fire smoldered long before it ignited, spreading quickly into the upstairs bedrooms.

Three minutes later, when firefighters arrived, all four children were trapped upstairs and the house was awash with flames.

The home was badly damaged. Fire investigators were not able to find smoke detectors, Miller said.

However, the landlord said that detectors were in the house when he rented out the property in early 1994.

“If there wasn’t a smoke detector, that explains it,” Miller said. “You hear a smoke detector many minutes before any rooms reach a flashpoint.”

In addition to checking detectors, Miller urged parents to discuss fire safety with their children this weekend.

Everyone should have a fire escape plan - even if it means jumping out a second-story window, he said.

Rehearse the plan with kids and choose a place for family members to meet outside, well away from the house.

, DataTimes