- Author
- Lee, A. | Midgett, J. | White, S.
- Title
- Review of the Sound Effectiveness of Residential Smoke Alarms.
- Coporate
- Consumer Product Safety Commission, Washington, DC
- Report
- CPSC-ES-0502, December 2004, 46 p.
- Keywords
- smoke detectors | fire alarm systems | noise (sound) | residential buildings | fire hazard | children | adults | effectiveness | wakefulness | elderly persons
- Identifiers
- waking effectiveness; sound effectiveness for older adults
- Abstract
- In 2003, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) initiated a project to review the audibility effectiveness of residential smoke alarms for the older population. The scope of the project was broadened to address recent concerns that children may not wake to the sound of a smoke alarm. The CPSC staff estimates that in 1999 there were 337,300 unintentional residential structure fires resulting in 2,390 civilian deaths, 14,550 civilian injuries, and $4.24 billion in property losses. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) reports that, during the 24-year period from 1977 to 2001, home fires and home fire deaths dropped 49% and 47%, respectively, excluding events from September 11, 2001. In 2001, four of every five fire deaths occurred in home structure fires, excluding 9/11, according to NFPA. An estimated 35 million people in the United States were 65 years old or older in 2000, or almost 13% of the population. In 2010, the "baby boom" generation will begin to turn 65. As more of the baby boomers become 65 and older, the number of people over the age of 65 is expected to double by the year 2030, growing to 70 million. The number of people over the age of 65 will have increased to 20% of the population, or one in five people in the United States, by 2030.