Sparta partnering with TVA to distribute free carbon monoxide detectors Tuesday to residents through a matching community grant.
Mayor Jerry Lowery said the program is part of a multiyear safety initiative that previously provided weather radios and fire blankets to the community. Lowery said the city and TVA each contributed $7,000 this year to purchase approximately 300 units.
“We just try to provide something safe that can make our community safer to live in and that was kind of the vision that I had when this thing started,” Lowery said. “It was a vision that I had to provide some safety items for the citizens, and hey it’s working, so we’re just, we’re excited about this program.”
Lowery said the distribution will begin at 10:00am at the Sparta Electric Department. The detectors are available on a first-come, first-served basis to any customer of the city.
“We wanted to hurry up and get this done as people are starting to turn on their heat, it’s going to be a little cooler at night, we can feel that little nip in the air at times,” Lowery said. “People are going to start turning on that heat, they’re going to be firing up the wood stoves and various things and we want them to at least have a way to recognize carbon monoxide.”
Lowery said the city is currently limiting the distribution to one unit per household to reach as many residents as possible. TVA requirements mandate the items go to their customers, so the program is specifically for those within the electric department service area.
“It’s a silent killer, and we just wanted to try to get as many as we can into our homes and just to provide the Sparta residents and even the community and some of the elderly some safe measures that they can,” Lowery said. “Once this goes off they know they need to get outside.”
Lowery said the city previously distributed several hundred weather radios and several thousand fire blankets in earlier rounds of the grant program. If the city has detectors remaining after serving residents, officials may look to reach people in the surrounding county.
“We’re going to keep rolling with this program,” Lowery said. “As long as they’ll keep joining partners with me, we’re going to keep doing it.”
Lowery said he plans to focus on providing fire extinguishers through the grant program next year.
