While we love having a great time - dining, shopping and outdoorsing - here in Arvada, we also think that safety is pretty cool. And since September is National Preparedness Month, we spoke to our friends at Arvada Fire for some tips to help keep all Arvadans safe. 

Arvada Fire typically responds to more than 17,00 calls annually — that’s nearly 50 per day in our community! Their preference is to prevent emergencies in the first place through public education and proactive programs. You can improve your fire and life safety in and around your home by following these tips from Arvada Fire.

BONUS TIP: Join Arvada Fire for Safety Day on September 28 and enjoy a family-friendly fair with firefighters, police officers and local first responders. Yes, there will be fire truck tours, too.

Sign Up For Emergency Alerts

Lookout Alert is Jefferson County's official emergency notification system. Through Lookout Alert, emergency responders can provide emergency and public safety messages to residents during wildfires, winter storms, floods, law enforcement incidents, and more. Visit lookout alert.co or text LookoutAlert to 67283 to get the link to register. It only takes a few minutes to enter or update your contact information and select your preferences for receiving alerts. Alerts can be sent through text, email, and/or voice messages.

Install and Test Working Smoke Alarms

Be honest, do you remember the last time you tested your smoke alarms? If you answered no to this question, it's time to hit that 'test' button. Through early detection, smoke alarms provide valuable time for you and your loved ones to follow a home escape plan. This is important because fire moves fast! Remember that smoke alarms should be installed in every bedroom, outside each sleeping area, and on every level of the home. They should be tested every month. If the alarm is older than ten years old, which you can check via the manufacturer's date on the back of the alarm, it's time to be replaced.

Prepare for Wildfire and Create Defensible Space

Many of our residences, particularly to the west, are considered part of the Wildland Urban Interface (WUI) and are at higher risk of wildfires. As Coloradoans, most of us are no strangers to living with or near wildfire. We all need to do our part to make our home and community more resilient to wildfire.

Defensible space — the buffer you create between a building on your property and the vegetation and wildland area surrounding it — is essential to improving your home's chance of surviving a wildfire. Defensible space slows or stops the spread of wildfire and protects your home from catching fire either from embers, direct flame, or radiant heat. A few ways to create defensible space include planting fire-resistant species around the home and thinning vegetation in your yard.

In Arvada, we encounter numerous days throughout the year with Red Flag Warnings and high fire danger. During these times, always obey fire restrictions and use caution with any activity that could produce a spark.

Learn Hands-Only CPR + Download PulsePoint App

Did you know that more than 350,000 cardiac arrests occur outside of the hospital each year? Unfortunately, less than half of all people who experience an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest get the immediate help that they need before professional help arrives. By learning the simple steps to hands-only CPR, you can double or triple the chance of survival for someone experiencing cardiac arrest! If you encounter someone who is unresponsive and not breathing, tell someone to call 911 and immediately push hard and fast in the center of the chest to 100-120 beats per minute.

You can also be a citizen hero by downloading the PulsePoint app. Through PulsePoint, users who are trained in CPR and willing to help in the event of an emergency are notified if someone nearby is having a cardiac emergency. PulsePoint can significantly strengthen the “chain of survival” by improving bystander response to cardiac arrest victims and increasing the chance that lifesaving steps will be taken prior to the arrival of emergency medical services.

Schedule a Home Safety Visit

If you have a concern about a fire or life safety issue within your home, you can contact Arvada Fire for a FREE home safety visit. If you have an issue that is preventing you from acquiring or installing smoke alarms in your home, our firefighters or risk reduction specialists will do that during the home safety visit. They will also evaluate fire risks and any hazards specific to your well-being, such as fall and tripping hazards for older adults. A home safety visit can be scheduled online or by calling 303-424-3012.