UTICA- The American Red Cross and over 150 local volunteers teamed up Saturday morning. Their mission was simple, to distribute as many smoke alarms as possible to those who need them.

“Having working smoke alarms reduces your chance of dying in a home fire by 50 percent,” said Mallory Brown, Executive Director of the Mohawk Valley American Red Cross. “You have two minutes to escape your home fire; the best way to prevent that is installing fire alarms.”

Dozens of volunteer groups made their way around Utica. Volunteers knocked on homeowners doors to see who may be in need of a fire alarm. A grand total of 568 free alarms were placed.

“We worked with the Utica Fire Department to determine which homes were at high risk of house fires,” said Brown. “However, anyone is eligible for this program.

The Mohawk Valley American Red Cross told WKTV if you are in need of a free fire alarm you can call them at, 315-733-4666. You must be within the Mohawk Valley chapter area to be eligible.