Campaign to distribute smoke detectors in 16 First Nations communities kicks off in Kahnawake

Montreal Gazette

04-06-2025

By
KAHNAWAKE — Indigenous Peoples living on reserves are 10 times more likely to die in a house fire than non-Indigenous Canadians, according to the National Indigenous Fire Safety Council. An initiative launched Wednesday in Kahnawake aims to change that.
The campaign will distribute 6,000 smoke detectors across 16 First Nations communities, including Kahnawake — devices that local firefighters say are more crucial than fire engines when it comes to saving lives.
'Fire departments don't save lives. They save structures,' said Kahnawake Fire Brigade captain Karonhi:io Curotte.
Fatal fires tend to spread too fast for fire departments to respond on time, he said. The life-and-death question is not how fast the fire is extinguished, but how quickly people get out.
'A fire grows so fast,' said Arnold Lazare, the former Kahnawake fire chief who is now spearheading the campaign in his capacity as Indigenous Fire Marshall of Canada at the National Indigenous Fire Safety Council.
Even 'if the department gets there within three minutes (after the fire starts) ... the smoke is at a level where it's fatal already.' Smoke detectors alert people to fires quickly, improving their odds of getting out on time.
In Kahnawake, many homes have smoke detectors, but the devices are often too old to function, fire chief Wihse Stacey said.
'I don't think people are hesitant to put smoke alarms in their homes.'
A recent distribution of smoke detectors saw the supply of more than 100 of the devices run out in a matter of minutes, he said.
'The problem is that they don't understand that smoke alarms have a shelf life.'
With most calls to the fire department concerning smaller issues, such as suspicious odours, Stacey said firefighters will talk to people they meet about installing smoke alarms.
'Public education' is key to fighting fires, he said. 'Telling them is one thing. Teaching them why is a whole different story.'
The detectors, donated by Kidde, a U.S. smoke detector distributor, will be installed by fire departments in homes to prevent improper installation. The detectors are designed to last 10 years without requiring a new battery, said Kidde communications officer Ivanette Bonilla.
A May 27 house fire in Kahnawake was the third in about a month, Curotte said.
'The house was fully engulfed,' said Stacey, with the family losing their home.
But that frequency is not the norm, Curotte said, with public safety campaigns having successfully reduced the number of fires over recent decades. When he became a firefighter 32 years ago, Curotte said the department would expect a major fire every month.
'People didn't have smoke detectors,' he said. 'We've had people die.'
Fire detector awareness has significantly improved in the community, he said, making Kahnawake less susceptible to fatal house fires than some of the other communities included in the campaign.
Many Indigenous communities are without fire departments, he said. And many don't receive the necessary funding to pay their firefighters.
Kahnawake has 15 paid staff, including firefighters, office personnel and ambulance drivers.
'It's the only fire department in all of Quebec where you see red and white ambulances,' Curotte said.