MARGATE – After a fatal fire Jan. 7 that claimed Ralph and Jessica Spinosi, the Margate Fire Department has been on a mission to make sure every home in the city has working smoke detectors.

As of the Jan. 19 City Commission meeting, Fire Chief Tony Tabasso said his department had installed 223 smoke detectors free, and still had more homes to check across the city. Those detectors came to the city via the Channel 6 ABC Operation Save a Life Program.

Deputy Chief Dan Adams and firefighter Dan Coane have been conducting home inspections since the day after the blaze, installing smoke detectors and making recommendations to homeowners should they need additional detectors. They traveled to Philadelphia in hopes of getting additional smoke detectors.

“It is beyond my imagination; we were able to secure 704 additional smoke detectors from Channel 6 and the Philadelphia Fire Department,” said Adams. “We filled every inch of our command vehicle with smoke detectors and brought them back to Margate.”

Tabasso said they are not the kind that have the flash to alert seniors who are hearing impaired, but if a homeowner purchases a hearing impaired smoke detector his firefighters will install it at no charge it as long as it does not have to be hard wired. In that case, the homeowner must contact an electrician.

Homeowners who wish to have the fire department check their homes or install smoke detectors can call (609) 822-5562.