Dec 6, 2007 9:34 pm US/Eastern
Fire Board Recommends Changes To Home Smoke Alarms
BOSTON (WBZ) ―
The state of Massachusetts is recommending major changes when it comes to fire safety in homes after an I-Team investigation.
I-Team reporter Kathy Curran put smoke detectors to the test this summer and found the most common devices didn't work very well.
So now, the State Fire board is ready to make a change to a code that no other state has done.
The board is recommending photo-electric smoke alarm, which respond better to smoke in every home.
The I-Team investigation in July showed how ionization alarms, which are the most common, don't give the most protection when it comes to escaping smoky smoldering fires.
"They could see ionization did not operate until the smoke was so thick you could hardly see the hand in front of your face," said Boston Deputy Fire Chief Jay Fleming.
Fleming has studied smoke alarm technology for 17 years and has battled the fire industry nationally for change.
"I think there are two flaws with ionization. There are excess-nuisance alarms, which cause people to take the battery out and poor response to smoldering fires, which contributes to thousands of fatalities per year," Fleming said.
The new code will require photo-electric alarms within 20 feet of the bathroom or kitchen. In areas beyond, such as a bedroom, combination alarms, which have both ionization and photo-electric technology, can be used.
"It will require at the time of sale of property to have installed the newer alarms of photoelectric," said State Fire Marshal Steve Coan.
The Bay State's move bucks the system when it comes to the standard set by the National Fire Protection Association.
"Going into this there were a lot of skeptics, including me," Coan said. "As fire marshal, you want to adopt a national code. When you deviate, you have to have the right basis of fact."
"If it's an ion detector there's a good chance it won't wake you up for another 30 minutes and the smoke is too thick to get out of the house," Fleming said.
After Fleming's research and the I-Team's test, Massachusetts will be the first state to say in a smoky fire the old ionization technology doesn't give people enough time to get out of the house.
Ultimately, the photo-electric alarms will be required when homeowners go to sell their homes, if a person builds a new home or during reconstruction.
A vote on the change to the building code will happen next week. Then public hearings will be held.
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