Vanguards of Cleveland, Inc. 

A Local Chapter of the International Association of Black Professional Firefighters

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Operation: Bright Future!

The Vanguards' Operation:Bright Future! is an initiative created by our organization in response to the multiple juvenile fire deaths that occurred within the City of Cleveland in recent years. Nationally, the United States has one of the highest rates of fire death of the industrialized world. Between 1994 and 1998 approximately 4,400 individuals lost their lives and another 25,100 were injured annually as the result of fire.

Who is Most at Risk

  • Senior citizens age 70 and over and children under the age of 5 have the greatest risk of fire death.

  • The fire death risk among seniors is more than double the average population.

  • The fire death risk for children under age 5 is nearly double the risk of the average population.

  • Children under the age of 10 accounted for an estimated 17 percent of all fire deaths in 1996.

  • African Americans and American Indians have significantly higher death rates per capita than the national average.

  • Although African Americans comprise 13 percent of the population, they account for 26 percent of fire deaths.

As fire service professionals and individuals who benefit greatly from our citizens support of the fire department we felt strongly compelled to act in some way to address this problem.

Program Summary

Citizens of Cleveland are able to obtain smoke detectors from our organization, including installation if required, at no cost to them whatsoever. We are currently supplying 10-year lithium ion detectors which do not require to have their batteries changed for a 10-year period unlike standard models that require a battery change every six months. We also provide free batteries for citizens that have existing detectors . As an additional part of the program we have purchased the fire safety trailer pictured below to provide on-site fire safety training. The trailer has the capability to simulate tornado and hurricane emergencies as well as residential house fire smoke conditions for training purposes.

 

Smoke Detector / Information Request Form

Please enter your information below to request smoke detectors, batteries and/or installation and a representative will contact you as soon as possible.

I am requesting installation of smoke detectors
I am requesting batteries for existing smoke detectors

I am requesting information on the Bright Future! program

I am requesting information on how I can volunteer to assist the program

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Send mail to tluke@vanguardsofcleveland.org with questions or comments about this web site.
Copyright © 2008 Vanguards of Cleveland Inc.
Last modified: 09/26/08