HARTFORD (WTIC News) -- The American Red Cross is in the business of protecting Americans. Its response to the 9/11 attacks involved 57,000 workers, and it’s a constant presence at house fires and natural disasters, aiding traumatized residents in their moment of need.
On the 25th remembrance of the attacks on Friday, the Red Cross was again protecting people in Hartford, marking its 9/11 Day of Service by sending volunteers to install free smoke detectors and provide fire safety education across the capital city.
“It’s not just a smoke alarm,” says Richard Branigan, CEO of the American Red Cross of Connecticut. “It’s what goes with it. It’s the care. It’s the concern that we have for individual families. It’s the education that’s part of this, and preparing that family to be more resilient, to be better prepared for an emergency.”
Branigan says Hartford is the agency’s busiest fire district in the state:
“We’re targeting those communities that we know have a higher incidence of fire, that have higher social vulnerability, and the two go hand-in-hand.”
The effort is part of the agency’s wider Sound the Alarm effort, which has delivered 25,000 detectors over 9 years, according to Branigan.
As part of Sound the Alarm, the Hartford Fire Department gives out free alarms daily. Hartford residents with interest in the program can contact the city’s Special Services Unit at (860) 757-4520.
On Friday’s Red Cross volunteer effort, Hartford Fire Chief Rodney Barco says, “If we can make it a big event every year, where more people are notified of this endeavor, it just makes our jobs easier.”
Barco adds that the fire department is also conducting outreach on its own.
“After every fire, our Special Services division goes out to that neighborhood and does what’s called ‘blitzing.’ So they knock on every door in that neighborhood. They offer free smoke detectors. They offer fire escape planning. And, they offer to check the end life of their smoke detectors.”
“There’s still homes out there that really require an additional area of opportunity for us, which is to make them safer,” says Branigan.
