Community Education & Outreach

Kenner Fire Department is committed to the safety of our community. We look for ways to teach the public about fire and life safety risks before an emergency happens. The Fire Prevention Bureau has several programs to help reduce risks in our neighborhoods.

Free Smoke Alarms

There is an easy way to know if there is an unsafe event in your home and you should get out fast — a smoke alarm. These safety devices need to be installed properly and you need to change the battery every six months even if you aren’t sure it needs a new one. Many people install a new battery with the time change.

Check your home. You should have a smoke alarm installed outside of every bedroom doorway as well as on every floor. A smoke alarm should be installed by the kitchen entrance, too, just in case of a kitchen fire. Garages are places for storing cleaning products and people aren’t usually there to notice if something happens. A smoke alarm could be placed at the doorway to the house if it’s a connected garage as an extra safety step.

If you would like smoke alarms installed in your Kenner home, please call 504-468-4000 to request the installation of free smoke alarms.

Smoke House Training

Every child participates in fire drills at school, where members of the fire department help school officials practice these life-saving activities. 

Another way the fire department talks to every child about fire safety when visiting schools, daycare centers, or community events is to show them how to evacuate a smoke-filled building. The smoke house is brought to the community by certified fire educators to teach about safety techniques like "Look. Listen. Feel." before trying to exit a home or school with smoke or fire.

To request more information about this program, you can fill out the Smoke House Demo Form (PDF) and when you click "Submit Here" on the form, it will automatically email your completed form to the Fire Department. Note: Automatic submission works only with Internet Explorer at this time. If you use another internet browser, please either:

• Print the form and mail it to our address located at:
  
  2226 Williams Boulevard
  Kenner, LA
  70062
• Or call Fire Headquarters at 504-468-4000 to provide information over the phone.

Safely Use a Fire Extinguisher

Before a fire occurs, you should always have a safe evacuation path from any room in the house. You can practice this with your family so that children or members of the family that do not move quickly will know the fastest way to evacuate.

Here are tips on what to do if you see a fire in your home or workplace:

• Sound the fire alarm. At home this can be a warning yell to get your family out; at work, this can be pulling an alarm in the office space.
• Go to the nearest fire extinguisher and point it at the fire. Use this method:
  • P – pull
  • A – aim
  • S – squeeze
  • S – sweep
• Evacuate immediately if the extinguisher is empty and the fire is not out.

The P.A.S.S. technique is easy to remember because it really describes what steps you do for the extinguisher. When you pull the pin, it breaks the seal on the extinguisher. As you aim low, the nozzle is pointed at the base of the fire. When you squeeze the trigger, the chemical chokes the fire by taking away the oxygen source (the fuel of a fire). The sweep motion covers the bottom of the fire until it’s out. You may need to squeeze and sweep if the fire re-ignites.

Part of being prepared is having the right tools in an emergency but also knowing when it’s best to escape safely and having trained professionals help. If you smell smoke or gas or have any doubt something is wrong, don’t hesitate to call 911 and have our Kenner firefighters provide assistance.