Toronto, Ontario, Canada, April 16, 2003: Underwriters Laboratories of Canada (ULC), a safety testing, certification and standards development organization, held a Standards Subcommittee meeting Wednesday, April 16, 2003, at its Toronto, Ontario, facility to discuss issues relating to why some children might not awaken when a smoke alarm sounds.

The issue has received attention in the United States and Canada after television stations in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and Fort Worth, Texas, coordinated demonstrations with local families and fire departments to gauge effectiveness of fire evacuation plans. Reporters were surprised to find that some children slept soundly through activated smoke alarms. 

As a result of the meeting, the Subcommittee set up a working group to better understand the physiological and technical aspects of the issue. Comprised of pediatric sleep experts, safety engineers, consumer interest groups and manufacturers, the group will gather information and make proposals for future research. The information the group gathers could provide the basis for changes to the way smoke alarms operate and/or the way in which they are installed and used.  The group will also work to raise public awareness of smoke alarm and fire safety issues.  The group will report back to the Subcommittee by July 2003.

Performance of smoke alarms is addressed by three ULC Standards for Safety; CAN/ULC-S531-02, Standard for Smoke-Alarms; CAN/ULC-S552-02, Standard for the Maintenance and Testing of Smoke Alarms; CAN/ULC-S553-02, Standard for Installation of Smoke-Alarms.  In addition, the National Building Code of Canada and Provincial and local bylaws specify requirements for the installation of smoke alarms.

“Based on what we heard from pediatric sleep experts and fire prevention officials, this is a complicated issue that might not have a single, easy answer,” said Rae Dulmage, ULC’s Director of Standards. “What we have heard so far seems to indicate that children’s sleep patterns may prevent them from being able to hear and react appropriately to alarms.  If, and until, a technological solution can be found, awareness of the issue will be a pressing concern for the fire safety community.”   

Dulmage and fire officials at the Subcommittee meeting emphasized that smoke alarms – when maintained properly – continue to save lives every day, and that consumers should consider them a reliable “front-line defense” against fire. 

“Since the introduction of smoke alarms to consumers in the 1970s,” he said, “statistics indicate that fire survival rates have improved dramatically. In fact, in Canada, the highest percentage of fire fatalities occur in homes with no smoke alarms, or smoke alarms with batteries disconnected.”  

Even so, ULC reminds consumers that smoke alarms are only one part of an effective fire evacuation plan. ULC urges consumers to consider these suggestions when developing a fire evacuation strategy:  

• Install smoke alarms both inside and outside all bedrooms as well as on every floor.  
• Develop a fire evacuation plan and practice it with all family members. It is necessary to practice home fire drills to be certain everyone is familiar with the smoke alarm signal, and to determine if there are any obstacles to a quick and safe evacuation (including the inability for some to awaken to the smoke alarm signal).  
• Parents and caregivers should be especially vigilant if they have children at home.   
• Working smoke alarms are essential in every household. Periodically test and maintain your smoke alarm in accordance with manufacturer instructions. Smoke alarms most often fail to respond because of missing, dead, or disconnected batteries.

The information accumulated at the ULC Subcommittee meeting will be shared with the Underwriters Laboratories’ Standards Technical Panel, which met in March to also discuss the issue in the United States.

Participants offering input at the April 16, 2003, meeting included representatives from ULC; Office of the Fire Marshal; Canadian Association of Fire Chiefs; Loyalist Township Emergency Services; Queen’s University in Kingston, Ontario; Canadian Hearing Society; Consumers’ Association of Canada; and Toronto’s Hospital for Sick Children.   

As part of ULC’s and UL’s open process of standards development, ULC’s Subcommittees and UL’s Standards Technical Panels are consensus bodies of individuals representing consumers, government agencies, regulatory authorities, manufacturers and other knowledgeable interested parties that develop and maintain effective product safety standards. Membership and participation is open to all persons who are directly and materially affected by the ULC Subcommittee and UL STP topics, although membership may be limited by rules governing Subcommittee and panel balance.  

# # # 

Underwriters Laboratories of Canada (ULC) is an independent, not-for-profit, testing, certification, and standards development organization. ULC has tested products for public safety for more than 80 years and is accredited by the Standards Council of Canada (SCC).  ULC is also an affiliate of Underwriters Laboratories Inc. (UL), one of the world’s foremost safety testing and certification leaders for more than 109 years. UL tests more than 18,000 types of products annually, and more than 17 billion UL Marks appear on products each year.  Worldwide, UL's family of companies and its network of service providers include 55 laboratories, testing and certification facilities, and 2 standards developers.