Don’t forget to set clocks back for daylight saving time

Mornings are about to get sunnier while afternoons will lose an hour of light starting Sunday as clocks “fall back” an hour in the U.S.

Daylight saving time ends at 2 a.m. local time Sunday for most of the country. That means schoolchildren headed to the bus stop Monday won’t have to do so under the cover of darkness, although sunsets will begin as most people’s workday ends in the afternoons.

Remember to set your clocks back before heading to bed Saturday night.

No time change is observed in Hawaii, most of Arizona (except the Najavo Nation), Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam and the Northern Marianas.

It’s also a good time of year to check smoke and carbon monoxide alarms in your home to make sure they aren’t expired, the Office of the Illinois State Fire Marshal said in a news release this week.

Smoke alarms only have a life span of 10 years before they need to be replaced. If your alarm was manufactured before October 2013, it’s time to replace it with a 10-year sealed battery device.

“Daylight saving time serves as a biannual reminder for residents to test, inspect and replace any broken or expired smoke and CO alarms in their homes that could save their life,” Illinois State Fire Marshal James A. Rivera said in a news release.

Here are some tips to help your family prepare or update its home fire escape plan:

• Get everyone in your household together and make a home escape plan. Walk through your home and look for two ways out of every room.
• Make sure escape routes are clear of debris and doors and windows open easily. Windows with security bars or grills should have an emergency release device.
• Plan a spot outside where everyone will meet once they have escaped. A good meeting place is something permanent, like a tree, light pole or mailbox a safe distance in front of the home.
• If there are infants, older adults, family members with mobility limitations or children who do not wake to the sound of the smoke alarm, make sure that someone is assigned to assist them in the event of an emergency.
• If the smoke alarm sounds, get outside and stay outside. Respond quickly – get up and go, remember to know two ways out of every room, get yourself outside quickly, and go to your outside meeting place with your family.
• Once you’re out, stay out! Under no circumstances should you ever go back into a burning building. If someone is missing, inform the fire department dispatcher when you call. Firefighters have the skills and equipment to perform rescues.

More tips on fire escape planning can be found by visiting nfpa.org/Public-Education/Staying-safe/Preparedness/Escape-planning.