October is National Fire Prevention Month and Pepco is marking the month by donating 650 smoke alarms and 350 carbon monoxide alarms to the DC Fire and EMS Department. This donation is part of our Emergency Services Partnership Program (ESSP), which helps fund and provide smoke alarm donations, electrical safety training, emergency management conferences and safety and educational programs that benefit first responders and the general public. This is the first year we are providing carbon monoxide detectors as part of this effort.

Since our first donation in 2004, we have donated 19,000 life-saving smoke alarms to the DC Fire and EMS Department and nearly 60,000 alarms have been donated to jurisdictions across our service area in Montgomery and Prince George’s counties in Maryland.

Statistics from DC Fire and EMS show most fire fatalities occur in homes where no smoke alarms were present or did not operate properly. Of the sixteen District fire fatalities in 2022 and 2023, six took place where there were no working smoke alarms. During that same time period, the Department installed more than 2,000 smoke alarms, and there were 90 incidents where smoke alarms alerted residents to get to safety.

Any District homeowner who is unable to afford a smoke detector can have one installed by contacting the DC Fire and EMS Fire Prevention Division at 202-727-1614 or by e-mail at fems.fireprevention@dc.gov.

The program demonstrates the positive value of public and private partnerships which enables us to provide more resources to the communities and residents that need them most. We are incredibly proud to be able to provide these smoke and carbon monoxide detectors to local residents and to continue this important partnership with DC Fire and EMS.