Get ready - it's that time of year again when the weather gets colder and the chance of snow seems to grow each week. Before the snow starts coming down, it is important to remember the Township's policies regarding snow removal. These will help keep you safe and allow the Public Works crew to clear your roads faster.

Several sponsors have contributed to a valuable program that can help save the lives of families in need. Operation 6abc Save a Life, in its 24th year, is a fire safety campaign that helps provide working smoke detectors to those who many not be able to afford them. While only four percent of homes do not have smoke detectors, these account for nearly half of the fire deaths nationwide. Additionally, some homes have detectors that may no longer work, leaving families at an increased safety risk in the event of a fire. Sponsors 6abc, Home Depot, Toyota, and Kidde, who makes smoke detectors, have teamed up to decrease fire-related deaths and injury in the area by ensuring that more homes have functional early detection systems.

The Middletown Township Fire Marshal's Office participates in this program to assist residents in the community. If a family in need calls that they need a replacement smoke detector, staff will provide them with one and perform a free home safety inspection. They also have an After the Fire Program in which they educate neighboring residents after a fire and offer smoke detectors. Duracell has donated batteries to the Fire Marshal's Office, allowing them to also provide replacement batteries to those who need them.

P rograms like these have a proven record of saving lives. Fire departments and fire marshals across the region participate, and more than 200,000 donated smoke detectors helped decrease the number of fire deaths by 63 percent last year.