Milwaukee Fire Chief urges people to install smoke detectors

Fire officials are working with the Red Cross to reduce fire deaths and injuries by 25 percent. For some people it might seem pretty obvious, installing a working smoke detector at home. But Milwaukee firefighters find many homes that don't have a working smoke detector. Seven people have died in fires in Milwaukee this year. All of those deaths were at homes without smoke detectors. That's why the Milwaukee Fire Department partnered with the Red Cross to get smoke detectors in homes. Many people underestimate how long they have to get out of a burning house - around two minutes. Milwaukee Fire Department Chief Mark Rohlfing thinks people get complacent about installing or checking smoke detectors. He says MFD installed more than 1,500 last year.

\"The smoke detectors that you buy sense when that fire first begins,\" Chief Rohlfing said. \"The ions in the air change and you get the early warning. It gives individuals the time they need to get out of bed. If they're not in bed, to leave whatever they're doing and get out of their home safely.\"

MFD will go around specific Milwaukee neighborhoods checking for and installing smoke detectors.