![]() (left) Volunteer Fire Sergeant Tommy Falcone talks with residents about the importance of having a working smoke detector (right) This truck stopped to get information from Career Firefighters Darryn Symes and Bill Birden about life-saving information for their children in case of a fire. |
![]() Volunteer Firefighter Jeff Shaw talks with a youngster about making sure batteries work in the family's smoke detectors in an apartment building across the street from where the fatal fire occurred. |
Almost two dozen volunteer and career firefighters and emergency medical personnel from the Hyattsville Volunteer Fire Department and City of Hyattsville police officers checked smoke detectors in about 100 homes and apartments tonight in the neighborhood surrounding the location of Saturday's fatal house fire on 42nd Avenue. Firefighters exhausted their anticipated supply in just over an hour, distributing 40 smoke detectors with batteries and 24 batteries for existing smoke detectors to those residents whose detectors did not operate. Tonight's effort is part of a program already being planned at the Hyattsville VFD to check smoke detectors throughout the community beginning Fire Prevention Week this October. The goal is to educate residents about the importance of knowing how to be fire safe in the home and ensure that a smoke detector is installed and working properly. For those residents who do not have a working smoke detector, the fire department will provide one free of charge or provide a replacement battery. The official program will be kicked off at our annual Open House on September 27th at the firehouse. Photos by Dave J. Iannone Hyattsville VFD |
![]() (left) Volunteer Fire Sergeant Jeff Werth knocks on a door while canvassing the neighborhood to check smoke detectors. (right) Volunteer Firefighter Mark Murphy - pictured left - and Volunteer EMS Sergeant Danielle Dwyer spent more than an hour checking homes on two blocks in Hyattsville while on the ambulance. |


