Springfield Fire Department firefighters will begin going door to door in the Oak Grove neighborhood on Saturday, Feb. 29 as the department continues efforts to ensure that every Springfield resident has adequate warning of a fire in their home.
“We finished our canvass of the Delaware neighborhood Feb. 22 and are excited to move into Oak Grove,” said Fire and Life Safety Educator Heather Parker.
Since April 2017, Springfield firefighters have installed 3,533 smoke alarms in area neighborhoods as a part of Project RED Zone. They have visited 23,996 homes in the Rountree, Delaware, West Central, Grant Beach, Westside, Heart of the Westside, Robberson, Woodland Heights, Tom Watkins, Doling, Midtown, Bissett and Weller neighborhoods as well as areas without organized neighborhood associations. In addition to the 3,500-plus installed alarms, firefighters have tested more than 6,600 alarms to ensure they are functioning properly and have replaced over 950 batteries in existing alarms as a part of Project RED Zone.
Project RED Zone – a reference to the red areas on the Springfield Fire Department’s map of fire incidents – stands for Reduce, Educate, Deliver. It is part of SFD’s Community Risk Reduction (CRR) program. The multifaceted campaign aims to ensure all homes in high-risk areas of the city have working smoke alarms.
“Now approaching year 3 of Project RED Zone, we are starting the see the positive effects of these canvasses,” said Fire Chief David Pennington. “We have responded to several house fires now in which the occupants of the home have safely escaped because of a working smoke alarm that we installed for them.”
Project RED Zone is funded with the help of donations from the American Red Cross of Southern Missouri, Safe Kids Springfield, FEMA Fire Prevention and Safety grants and general revenue SFD funds designated for public education.
The Fire Department offers free smoke alarms and batteries to anyone in need. To obtain a free alarm, call 417-874-2300.