With many Victorians staying home to stop the spread of COVID-19 and many working from home for the first time, firefighters are asking people to add checking their smoke alarms to their at home to-do list.

Metropolitan Fire Brigade (MFB) and the Country Fire Authority (CFA) are reminding people to keep smoke alarms at full working capacity with long-life lithium batteries, and to clean them regularly and test they are working.

It’s also a good time to check your home for any potential fire hazards. If you have recently started working remotely from your home, make sure you are being fire safe by:

• Not overloading power boards or having loose cables.
• Ensuring monitors, laptops, televisions and other equipment have good air flow around them and are not in confined spaces or covered.
• Not leaving electronic equipment like laptops and phones sitting or charging on beds.
• Turning off all electrical appliances at the power point when not in use.
• Ensuring home heating, including flues and chimneys, are regularly cleaned and serviced by a certified technician.
• Checking any home fire extinguishers or fire blankets to make sure they’re not out of date.
• Updating your fire plan and talking about it with your household – have a fire plan in place and practice it regularly, just like you would in the office.