The Fire & Life Safety (FLS) department is charged with meeting the department's public education objectives by creating, implementing, and evaluating fire safety education programs that cause positive behavioral changes in the community.
In coordination with the Alabama Fire College and The American Red Cross, FLS also manages a smoke alarm program, providing free battery-powered smoke alarms to the residents of Mobile.
The Mobile Fire-Rescue Department’s Fire & Life Safety department is designated as a National Fire Protection Association Champion Award winner.
Fire Service Captain Dwight Smith is the Fire & Life Safety Manager for the Mobile Fire-Rescue Department.
To schedule Fire Safety Classes for schools, businesses, or community groups, contact FLS at (251) 208-5802.
Firefighter Markell Jones is MFRD's Fire & Life Safety Specialist, responsible for managing public education outreach programs.
For more information on the Smoke Alarm Program, please call (251) 208-1417.
CALL (251) 208-5802 FOR MORE SAFETY TIPS
To register for FREE smoke alarm installation:
Most people think they will never have a fire. But, in the United States each year there are over 2.5 million fires reported, over 5,000 fire deaths, and 30,000 fire-related civilian injuries.
Install smoke detectors, test them weekly, and change the batteries annually: Smoke detectors cut your risk of dying in a home fire by half. Many fires happen at night, when you are asleep. Smoke and poisonous gas travel through the house faster than flames. Without a smoke detector, you could succumb to the gas and smoke before you know there is a fire.
Sleep with doors closed. Closed doors act as a barrier to keep smoke and heat out for a little while.
Plan two escape routes from every room, ensure doors and windows open, and have a fire drill at least twice a year: Smoke rolls down from the ceiling; a familiar room can be so dark you cannot find your way through it. When escaping, crawl low: A burning room's temperature can be 90 degrees F near the floor and 315 degrees F at eye level. Fire heat can sear your lungs or fuse clothing to your skin. Test doors for heat: do not proceed if they are hot. If you are trapped, keep all doors closed between you and the fire, and wait at a window where firefighters can see you. If there is a phone in the room, call 911 to say exactly where you are.
Do not stop to collect anything. Once out of a burning house, do not return: It can take one flame 30 seconds to become an uncontrollable fire, 3 minutes to make a room so hot everything in it ignites, and 5 minutes to engulf a house.
Fire safety and injury prevention education can decrease the number of fires. The Mobile Fire- Rescue Department has a strong public education program to help prevent fires and injuries in Mobile.