Fire In Bellevue A Tragic Reminder To Check Smoke Alarms

The fire that killed the Lasch family is a tragic reminder to check your smoke alarms.  While the investigation is still ongoing, the family died from smoke inhalation.  There may not have been working smoke alarms in the home.  It appears that the home was a rental property.  In Pennsylvania, the landlord is responsible for making sure there are working smoke alarms on each floor of a rental property.

There are 2 types of smoke alarms:  ionization and photoelectric smoke alarms.  Ionization smoke alarms work better at detecting fast, fires, but are not good at detecting fires with heavy smoke.  Photoelectric smoke alarms work better at detecting smoky smoldering fires.  There are also dual-sensor smoke alarms that combine ionization and photoelectric technology.  

The National Fire Protection Association recommends having both types of smoke alarms in your home.  The NFPA also recommends checking the smoke alarms every month to make sure they are working.

For more information on smoke alarm and fire safety go to the NFPA website www.nfpa.org.