American Red Cross disaster-trained volunteers are assisting families whose home, located on N 12th Avenue, Dillon, was damaged by a fire early this morning. The Red Cross is helping three people by providing financial assistance for immediate needs such as food, clothing, and shelter, along with referrals to much needed resources.  Every second counts when there’s a home fire. To help protect your household, test your smoke alarms each month and practice your escape plan until everyone can get out in less than two minutes. Home fires are so dangerous that they claim more lives in a typical year than all natural disasters combined. But working smoke alarms can cut the risk of dying in a home fire by half. The sooner an alarm alerts you to a fire, the sooner you can get out. This is critical because fire experts say you may have less than two minutes to escape a burning home before it’s too late.
Fires now travel faster through homes, largely due to popular open-concept layouts and synthetic materials. Synthetics burn more rapidly than hardwood and cotton, which were more common in older homes that typically had more walls and doors, lower ceilings, and narrower hallways that help to better confine fires.
YOU CAN HELP: Turn your compassion into action to ensure our South Carolina communities are ready and prepared for emergencies. Join our Prepare SC campaign and help the Red Cross:
·Respond to disasters large and small and deliver relief and comfort to families in need
·Provide access to safe, lifesaving blood products
·Offer support and essential services to members of our armed services, veterans and their families
·Teach lifesaving skills to individuals who are trained to act with confidence when emergencies happen
Please donate by visiting redcross.org/preparesc