Photo: Emma Friedman/WBZ NewsRadio
WESTBOROUGH, Mass. (WBZ NewsRadio) — Westborough Fire Chief Patrick Purcell and State Fire Marshal Jon Davine held a press conference Tuesday to discuss smoke alarm safety.
They’re trying to spread the word about how many smoke alarms in the state will be nearing the end of their lifespan due to a 2015 update to Massachusetts Fire Code.
The update required smoke alarms to have a 10-year sealed battery and a hush feature that would allow for the alarm to work even if batteries were removed.
Now, in 2025, these 10-year batteries are reaching the end of their usefulness.
“Smoke alarms are like any other appliance they don't last forever,” Chief Purcell said. “Our concern is that a wave of smoke alarms in homes across Massachusetts won't be reliable much longer typically beyond December.”
Purcell and other fire chiefs across the state are asking Massachusetts residents to check the back of their smoke alarms for the expiration date to avoid a potentially dangerous situation.
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State Fire Marshal Davine explained that some smoke alarms have already begun to stop working.
“Last year, almost 40% of the state's residential fire deaths took place between October and December,” Davine said. “Tragically, we found working smoke alarms at only one third of those deadly fires.”
He also told residents to make sure they were buying quality fire alarms and to not cheap out, as the extra money spent is well worth it.
“If the price seems too good to be true it probably is,” Davine said.
Officials also say to not throw out or recycle the smoke alarms you are replacing as the fire-code-approved alarms tend to use lithium-ion batteries. These alarms “should be taken to separate recycling or household hazardous waste collection points,” according to the United States Environmental Protection Agency.
WBZ NewsRadio’s Emma Friedman (@EmmaFriedmanWBZ) reports.