JOHN DAY – The John Day and Canyon City volunteer fire departments have received 600 new smoke detectors as part of a grant from the federal government to the State Fire Marshal’s Office. The devices will be installed in area homes on Saturday, Oct. 25.

Claudia Tacy, who is spearheading the program, said John Day/Canyon City is one of only three communities in the state that are part of the program.

“One of the communities is on the coast, one in the east and ours was the community in the central part of the state which was selected,” she said. “This is part of a pilot program in an effort to bring older homes up to code.”

Tacy said firefighters on both departments will be participating in the installation with help from community volunteers.

“We will be going around knocking on doors, with our specific targets being homes constructed before 1980,” Tacy said.

The new smoke detectors will have batteries with a 10-year life span, eliminating the need to have them changed every six months like many of the older alarms recommend.

“We will also provide an information packet provided by the State Fire Marshal’s Office to homeowners when we install the alarm,” Tacy said. “We also have six alarms designed for the hearing-impaired.”

There is no charge for installation, and anyone interested in having their residence fitted with one of the new devices or to volunteer assistance, can call either the John Day Volunteer Fire Department at (541) 575-1855 or the Canyon City Volunteer Fire Department at 575-0509.