06-05-2025
Berks company providing free smoke alarms in community stricken by fire tragedies
A Reading company that describes itself as a one-stop shop for commercial and residential security system installation has launched an initiative to provide free smoke detectors to residents of Robeson Township, the location of two recent home fire tragedies.
Alarm Tech will supply and help distribute smoke detectors to households across Robeson Township with the help of the Gibraltar and Geigertown fire companies as part of the Safe Homes, Safe Families initiative, the company announced this week.
The two volunteer fire companies provide primary fire protection in Robeson, where five people died as a result of two predawn fires less than three weeks apart in April.
On April 9, a 34-year-old woman and her father were unable to escape a fire in the middle of the night that was linked to a wood-burning stove. No working smoke detectors were found in the home, fire officials said.
The second fire, on April 28, claimed the lives of a 54-year-old man and his parents who were unable to get out despite smoke alarms activating, fire officials said.
Alarm Tech, a family-owned company, has deep ties to that community.
'As a company built by Robeson Township residents, the recent events in our community have hit incredibly close to home,' Richard Fix, owner of Alarm Tech and a retired assistant chief of Gibraltar Fire Company located in the township, said in the announcement. 'This initiative is our way of giving back and doing what we do best — protecting families through proactive fire safety and education.'
The initiative is open to all residents of Robeson Township and may expand throughout Berks County soon, the company said.
Residents can sign up by filling out a short form online. Detector distribution will begin in coordination with local fire companies, with scheduled pick-up dates to be announced soon.
For more information or to request a detector, visit
With three divisions — Alarm Tech Systems, Alarm Tech Suppression and Alarm Tech Sprinkler — the company can design, install, maintain, inspect and monitor fire alarm, security, sprinkler and suppression systems.
Geigertown Fire Company Chief Scott Gullo said Alarm Tech's initiative is most welcome. Since the fires, he said, the fire company has been having internal discussions about launching its own initiative that would provide free services to homeowners, especially those unable to install smoke detectors, to ensure every home has working smoke alarms.
The details of the program, which would piggyback on Safe Homes, Safe Families, are still being worked out, he said. In the meantime, the fire company will work with Alarm Tech to arrange one or more dates for residents to pick up free alarms.
