FIVE POINTS FIRE COFor Your Information FYIFYI

Media Advisory

January 22, 2009Contact: USFA Press Office: 301-447-1853Washington DC Fire Press Office: 202-345-6371FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASEFIRE SERVICE LEADERSHIP TO ISSUE A NATIONAL CALL

FOR WORKING SMOKE ALARMS TO PROTECT ALL RESIDENTSWashington, D.C.- Philadelphia Fire Commissioner Lloyd

Ayers, Baltimore Fire Chief James Clack and Washington, D.C. Fire Chief Dennis Rubin will join United States Fire Administrator (USFA) Greg Cade to ask all residents of this nation to install, maintain and test their smoke alarms today. This national effort is a result of one of the deadliest holiday seasons in recent memory and several significant fires in the first days of 2009. Since Thanksgiving 2008, there have been more than 158 fatal fires in the United States resulting in over 200 fire fatalities. You are invited to join USFA Administrator Cade and these metropolitan fire chiefs.

Washington, D.C.

“The 2008 holiday season and the start of 2009 may be recorded as one of the deadliest for residential fires in recent memory of the fire service,” said Cade. “Not only has there been a significant number of preventable fires, but the occurrences of multiple fatalities resulting from these fires are simply unacceptable within our nation. There should be a smoke alarm protecting every person in this nation today, particularly as we sleep.”

•On Christmas Eve, four died in a house fire in Mount Sterling, Kentucky.  All of the victims were children and officials cannot be certain whether smoke alarms worked.

•Four adults and three children died in a southwest Philadelphia home the day after Christmas when gasoline was used to fuel a kerosene heater. There were no working smoke alarms in the home.

•In Baltimore, two people died in a fire above a grocery store.  A young couple died in the blaze and investigators found no working smoke alarms in the building.

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•In Washington, D.C. on New Year's Day, six individuals died in a house fire on Jackson Street, Northeast.  While the cause was listed as accidental/electrical, officials are not sure smoke alarms worked properly.

•Yesterday, eight people died in a residential fire in Oswego County, New York. The cause is still under investigation.

•Yesterday, three people, including two teenage girls, died after an early morning house fire in Ringling, Oklahoma. Officials say the fire started early Monday morning while at least two of the victims were still in bed. For the two teenage girls who lived inside the house, this was supposed to be their first day back to school after winter break. Officials say once flames broke out at 4 a.m., the girls, along with another relative, never made it out of the home.

In the event of a fire, a properly installed and maintained smoke alarm can save your life and those of your loved ones. Smoke alarms are a very important means of preventing home fire fatalities by providing an early warning signal so you and your family can escape. They are one of the best safety devices you can buy and install to protect yourself, your family, and your home. You can prevent tragedies simply by testing and maintaining your smoke alarms and practicing a fire escape plan. All smoke alarms in your house should be tested once a month and their batteries replaced annually or as indicated by the manufacturer’s instructions.

U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission

Office of Information and Public Affairs Washington, DC 20207

• Bosch® and Siemens® Model Dishwashers • Recalled by BSH Home Appliances Corporation

Due to Fire Hazard

•WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed.

•Name of Product: Bosch® and Siemens® Model Dishwashers

•Units: About 476,500

•Manufacturer: BSH Home Appliances Corp., of Huntington Beach, Calif.

•Hazard: An electrical component in certain model dishwashers can overheat, posing a fire hazard to consumers.

•Incidents/Injuries: BSH Home Appliances has received 51 reports of incidents, including 30 reports of fires resulting in property damage. No injuries have been reported.

Description: This recall involves certain Bosch® and Siemens® dishwashers manufactured from May 1999 through July 2005. The brand name is printed on the dishwasher’s front control panel. Model and serials numbers are located inside the dishwasher door panel on the upper right side.

Brand Model Numbers Must Begin With

Serial Numbers Must Begin With

Bosch

SHE43C, SHE44CSHE46C, SHE56CSHU33SHU42SHU432SHU43C, SHU53A

FD8503 – FD8507FD8501 – FD8505FD7905 – FD8505FD8407 – FD8505FD8004 – FD8211FD8205 – FD8507

Siemens SL34A FD8308 – FD8505

Sold at: Appliance and specialty retailers nationwide from May 1999 through December 2006 for between $550 and $1,100.Manufactured in: United StatesRemedy: Consumers should immediately stop using the listed model dishwashers and contact the repair hotline for a free repair.Consumer Contact: For additional information, contact the BSH Home Appliances at (800) 856-9226 anytime or visit the brand’s Web site at www.boschappliances.com or www.siemens-home.com

Bosch

Siemens

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To report a dangerous product or a product-related injury, call CPSC's hotline at (800) 638-2772 or CPSC's teletypewriter at (800) 638-8270, or visit CPSC's web site at www.cpsc.gov/talk.html. To join a CPSC email subscription list, please go to https://www.cpsc.gov/cpsclist.aspx. Consumers can obtain this release and recall information at CPSC's Web site at www.cpsc.gov.

I wonder how many people know about this ~ A 36 year old female had an accident several weeks ago and totaled her car. A resident of Kilgore, Texas , she was traveling between Gladewater & Kilgore. It was raining, though not excessively, when her car suddenly began to hydro-plane and literally flew through the air. She was not seriously injured but very stunned at the sudden occurrence!

When she explained to the highway patrolman what had happened he told her something that every driver should know - NEVER DRIVE IN THE RAIN WITH YOUR CRUISE CONTROL ON. She thought she was being cautious by setting the cruise control and maintaining a safe consistent speed in the rain.

But the highway patrolman told her that if the cruise control is on when your car begins to hydro-plane and your tires lose contact with the pavement, your car will accelerate to a higher rate of speed making you take off like an airplane. She told the patrolman that was exactly what had occurred.

The patrolman said this warning should be listed, on the driver's seat sun-visor - NEVER USE THE CRUISE CONTROL WHEN THE PAVEMENT IS WET OR ICY, along with the airbag warning. We tell our teenagers to set the cruise control and drive a safe speed - but we don't tell them to use the cruise control only when the pavement is dry.

The only person the accident victim found, who knew this (besides the patrolman), was a man who had a similar accident, totaled his car and sustained severe injuries.

NOTE: Some vehicles (like the Toyota Sienna Limited XLE) will not allow you to set the cruise control when the windshield wipers are on.

Rod O’Connor

Obtained by:

Presented By:

Five Points Fire CoNarrated by:

Sharon Borkowski