Fire department has 222 smoke/CO detectors in need of homes that want to be safer

Lisha Van Nieuwenhove

Where there’s smoke, there should be smoke detectors. The Uxbridge Fire Department recently received 222 combination smoke and carbon monoxide alarms from Enbridge Gas as part of an effort to improve home safety and bring fire and carbon monoxide-related deaths down to zero. The fire department received the alarms through Safe Community Project Zero – a public education campaign with the Fire Marshal’s Public Fire Safety Council (FMPFSC) that is providing more than 14,200 alarms to residents in 75 communities across Ontario.

Firefighter Clinton Harper, Enbridge operations supervisor Rodney Smallwood, fire chief Mike MacDonald, regional councillor Bruce Garrod, and Capt. Ken Maynard stand ready to distribute 222 donated smoke and carbon monoxide detectors. Photo by Lisha Van Nieuwenhove

“This is really important,” said Fire Chief Mike MacDonald. “Smoke and CO detectors are key elements in the first lines of defence to prevent accidents and deaths related to fire and CO exposures. Being alerted to the danger and getting out of the house is the way to prevent a fatality.”

This year, Enbridge Gas invested $450,000 in Safe Community Project Zero. Over the past 17 years, the program has provided more than 115,000 alarms to Ontario fire departments.

“Each day, fire departments focus their efforts on educating the public about the importance of having working smoke and CO alarms in their home. The objective of Safe Community Project Zero is to deliver these alarms to areas where they are needed most,” said Jon Pegg in a joint news statement with the fire department and Enbridge. Pegg is the Ontario Fire Marshal and chair of the FMPFSC. “This is a program that not only helps fire departments raise awareness about the legal requirement to have working smoke and carbon monoxide alarms, but also reinforces the critical role they play in saving lives.”

Starting Jan. 1, 2026, updates to the Ontario Fire Code will require additional carbon monoxide alarms in all residential spaces with potential sources of the deadly gas. When properly installed and maintained, combination smoke and carbon monoxide alarms help provide the early warning to safely escape from a house fire or carbon monoxide exposure. Carbon monoxide is a toxic, odourless gas that is a by-product of incomplete combustion of many types of common fuels.

“Carbon monoxide alarms play a vital role against this invisible threat, often called ‘the silent killer,” said Rodney Smallwood, operations supervisor with Enbridge Gas.