Firefighters from Ottawa Fire Services will visit homes across the city from Monday, June 5 to Monday, June 12 as part of the spring Wake Up! program to ensure smoke alarms and carbon monoxide alarms are present and working.
Ontario’s Fire Code requires that homes have a working smoke alarm on each floor and outside each sleeping area. Carbon monoxide alarms are also required outside sleeping areas if the home has an attached garage, a wood stove or a fuel-fired appliance.
Firefighters will ask to inspect and test alarms and provide information on fire safety and home escape planning. Residents who do not have working smoke alarms may have one installed for them or be provided with new batteries. Ottawa Fire Services will provide these services to residents for free.
Visits will take place between 6 and 8 pm on weekdays and between 2 and 4 pm on weekends. Firefighters will be in uniform, and residents are not obligated to provide them access to their home. This is a courtesy call only, and firefighters will only visit select areas. They will leave fire safety information in the mailbox if no one is home.
Firefighters have been visiting homes every spring and fall since the Wake Up! program began in 2005, except when public health guidelines for the COVID-19 pandemic prevented it.
To learn what is involved in a firefighter home visit, watch the Wake Up! video. Visit ottawa.ca/fire for more information on smoke and carbon monoxide alarms.
