(L-R) Fire fighters Rex Pilgrim, Jason Gruevski, & Mark CarterIt is a known fact that a smoke alarm can save lives simply by giving your family early warning of fire.

However a smoke alarm with a flat battery is just as bad as no smoke alarm at all.

House fires are more common in the winter months, so fire fighters from CFA and MFB are urging all homes to take a few minutes and check your smoke alarms. A campaign is running to change the battery on the same day we come out of daylight savings.

Do your kids know what to do when the smoke alarm goes off?

Take some time to remind family members what actions to take if they smell smoke or see flames inside the home.

Simple actions like getting down low and crawling under smoke save lives, and every family should have a home fire escape plan that identifies all possible escape routes.