The Life Safety & Fire Education Section is responsible for coordinating and implementing fire safety program in all areas of the county. The section works closely with FireCode Enforcement and the Fire Investigations and Bureau of Operations in addressing the needs of county residents. Since the early 1990's, the section has expanded its mission to include not only fire prevention but injury prevention initiatives.

Programs include:

A one-day workshop is given in the fall and spring for employees of hospitals and nursing homes. Participants receive classroom instruction on hazard recognition, built-in fire protection, evacuation procedures, patient carries and assists and use of portable fire extinguishers. Afternoon session is devoted to practical exercises involving fire extinguishers, patient carries and assists and a simulated rescue. Contributions from the participants support these workshops.

Operation Extinguish is a program that was developed by the Montgomery County Department of Fire and Rescue Services in 1984 to provide intervention and educational services for juvenile firesetters and their families as well as youngster involved in fireworks, pipe bombs and false alarms. The program combines psychological counseling and fire safety education in a effort to eliminate this behavior.

The program is designed to handle 70 youths a year through a contract administrated by Psychotheraeupetic Resources Inc. (PRI), Bethesda, MD. This section works closely with the contractor in monitoring the program and is involved in the three 1 1/2 hour fire safety education classes.

Statistics prove that nearly 65% of all arson fires are the result of juveniles. Operation Extinguish was developed as a positive re-enforcement to help juveniles eliminate this behavior. At the time of development, no program existed to help young fire setters. This program now gives judges and juvenile services an alternative when considering a penalty for juveniles.

Juvenile fire setters age 7-18 are charged and required to report to the Montgomery County Police Youth Division with their parents for screening. After interviewing the child and the parents, the screening officer decides whether or not to refer the child to Operation Extinguish. The program for the child and his or her parents consists of two major elements which are Psychological evaluations of both the child and family, and six hours of fire safety education. Referrals to Operation Extinguish may be made by the parent or guardian also.

The program has had tremendous success since it was originated, with hundreds of juveniles successfully completing. Operation Extinguish has redirected the lives of the children, and prevented measurable loss to life and property. The program received an award in 1985 from the National Association of Counties for being one of the outstanding juvenile justice programs in the United States.

Conduct site visits to assist in developing fire evacuation procedures, training and information specific to the type of occupancy. Included are invitations to speak at junior and senior high schools.

 Montgomery County, Maryland was the first jurisdiction in the country to adopt a smoke detector ordinance in 1976. The law requires all residential occupancies to have detector protection and went into effect in 1978. The section has a long history of smoke detector involvement. In 1982, Johns Hopkins University , Fairfax County, Virginia, and Montgomery County, Maryland were involved in landmark study to evaluate the effectiveness of smoke detectors in owner-occupied homes. During that same time, the department participated in a residential smoke detector effectiveness study sponsored by the International Association of Fire Chiefs Foundation. Since the adoption of the smoke detectors law, fire fatalities have decreased significantly while the population of the county has increased. In 1983, five years after the law went into effect, fire fatalities decreased 48% and by 1988, 62%.

 The section is a member of the SAFE KIDS Montgomery County. Our local coalition is involved in bicycle safety and the use of helmets, distribution of smoke detectors, and child passenger safety.