State Fire Marshal’s “100 for 100” Initiative to Reach 4,000 Alarms Installed

NASHVILLE – Seven Tennessee fire departments aim to each install 100 smoke alarms in a matter of hours across the Volunteer State on Saturday, July 30 as part of the Tennessee State Fire Marshal’s Office (SFMO) “100 for 100” challenge.

In October 2015, the SFMO announced a “100 for 100” smoke alarm installation initiative that challenged 10 Tennessee fire departments to install 100 smoke alarms in one day to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the SFMO. The response to the event was so great that the SFMO has continued issuing the challenges. A total of 3,534 alarms have been installed in homes across the state as part of the three “100 for 100”’ challenges that have taken place so far. This weekend’s effort is expected to bring the total number of alarms installed to 4,000.

“Tennessee fire departments have consistently stepped up and exceeded expectations when it comes to these life-saving challenges,” said State Fire Marshal and Commerce & Insurance Commissioner Julie Mix McPeak. “We are thankful for their partnership in helping spread awareness about these essential devices. Working smoke alarms have proven time and time again to prevent deaths, injuries and property damage and all Tennesseans should have them in their homes.”

Participating departments for the July challenge include:

Madisonville Fire Department (FD), Blount County FD, Doyle VFD, Carroll County FD, Lexington FD, Martin FD, and Milan FD.

Participants are encouraged to post photos and videos of their work using the #100for100 hashtag. The SFMO will be posting the progress to social media feeds on Facebook and on Twitter. The final tallies of the event will also be announced on social media.                                                               

The smoke alarms provided for the challenge are part of the SFMO’s Get Alarmed program. The program, launched in 2012, has distributed more than 102,000 free smoke alarms to 453 partnering fire departments across the state to install within high-risk homes. Those smoke alarms are credited with saving the lives of 139 people so far and have helped dramatically reduce Tennessee’s fire death rate.

Tennesseans in need of a smoke alarm can utilize the SFMO’s online alarm form to request a free installation.

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