Firefighters in Chatham-Kent will be taking to the streets and knocking on doors this weekend to educate the public on fire safety in their homes.
Chatham-Kent Fire and Rescue firefighters from all 19 stations, along with their community partners, will be going door-to-door on Saturday as part of CHiRP Day in CK.
Fire crews will provide local residents with fire safety education in their home, while checking, testing, and replacing smoke and carbon monoxide alarms.
“We’re really just trying to get people to spend a few minutes thinking about the safety of their homes so that they can relax and enjoy the holidays,” said Fire Chief Chris Case.
According to fire officials, the entire process is free and takes less than 10-15 minutes.
Case said firefighters provided safety inspections at nearly 1,000 homes in Chatham-Kent during CHiRP Day in 2022.
“Everyone of those homes, we leave it safer than when we found it. So our ultimate goal is to get everybody in Chatham-Kent to have a CHiRP check,” he said.
Case added that house fires can very easily turn tragic. He pointed to a house fire that occurred last month on St. George St. in Chatham, which left one person dead and sent four others to hospital.
“Tragedies do happen. People never think it’s going to happen to them,” said Case. “Last year was the worst year on record in Ontario for fire deaths. Not just in Chatham-Kent, but all over Ontario, we’re seeing more people lose their lives to fires and we’re doing everything we can to try and address that.”
Those interested in requesting a CHiRP Home Safety Check can do so by calling 519-360-1998.
