We so often see house fires on the evening news. Notice how they usually occur at night? What is really alarming is that 40% of people killed in fires never awaken! 
While no data is available regarding the percentage of hearing impaired individuals killed in house fires at night, it is safe to assume the figure is higher as their hearing aids are typically (and rightly) resting in their box in their night stand.
How can you ensure your safety from fires in general, and particularly at night? If you cannot hear your fire alarm with or without your hearing aids, there are solutions. One is a system that vibrates your bed and flashes a light while sounding the auditory alarm. Studies show that almost 100% of all individuals awaken with a bed shaker, making it the most reliable alerting system available. Another option emits a low frequency alarm, more easily heard by most individuals with hearing loss than the typical high frequency alarms on the market. Some systems are independent and some can work with your existing fire alarm.
Don’t assume your partner will wake in time to alert you. They may be away on travel, etc. and remember, 40% of all individuals never awaken to fire alarms at night.
Finally, make sure your fire alarms work. Approximately 20% of all fire alarms do not, most often due to dead batteries. As we just changed to daylight savings time, it’s a great opportunity to check the batteries when you switch your clocks back that extra hour. Take that extra step to ensure your safety- we are happy to help if you have any questions!
