The Evanston Fire Department and public health officials urged residents Tuesday to learn about the state’s new smoke detector law, which requires residents to replace them by 2022.
According to a Tuesday EFD release, EFD worked with the Illinois General Assembly to pass the law because of the number of deaths that occur in Illinois homes without smoke detectors. In 2018, 70 percent of the residential fire deaths were in homes without smoke detectors, the release said.
The new law requires residents to install an alarm with a 10-year sealed battery by the end of 2022.
“People often have a false sense of security when it comes to fire safety,” state Rep. Robyn Gabel (D-Evanston) said in the release.