BY KIMBERLY SHERMAN

PHOTOS BY COREY NICKOLS

Gosh, it’s a pain to change the battery in the smoke detector. That unmistakable screech of a smoke alarm in need of some TLC just grates on the ears; it’s almost an easier solution just to take out the battery all together and be done with it. After all, what’s the risk? A home fire will never happen to me.

The mantra “It’ll never happen to me” rips through the soul of Sylvia Escalante every day as she mourns the loss of her girls, Anna, 9, and Ruvi, 8.

Inspired, encouraged, determined to erase that inaccurate notion from the minds of others, she continues her trek, alongside Fire Captain Mike Bowman of Cal Fire/Fresno County Fire Department, to inform everyone she can about the life-saving abilities of the smoke detector.

Bowman was the public information officer (PIO) in the wee, cold hours of February 2006 when he responded to a house in Calwa, in the southern part of Fresno. It was an electri- cal fire—the outlet that housed the refrigerator plug caught fire. The fingers of the flames and curling smoke wrapped the older home tightly within minutes.

The fire department arrived within five minutes of receiv- ing the call and found fire bulging and reaching from the bars, typical of the neighborhood, which gripped each window. “Firefighters went to the north side of the house and ripped the bars off,” said Bowman. “Using thermal imaging, they found two girls, collapsed, within 15 feet of the window.

“They were both revived, but succumbed, within two days, to smoke inhalation.”

A single mother, Escalante was working three jobs to support her girls, and was still mourning the loss of her father, whom she’d buried two months earlier. “I wanted my kids to have everything,” she sighed. “I wanted to keep them off the streets. They were going to join cheerleading the following year.”

Escalante had taken a night job at a group home to save up—a cheerleading mom knows how much money is involved in the sport—and both of Escalante’s girls had the talent and desire to join their school’s squad. Escalante’s sister, who lived in a home in the back of the property, kept watch over the girls while their mother was away.

The blood-curdling screech of a properly maintained smoke detector would have saved the girls’ lives that night.

Origin of Early Detection

Bowman was in the position to step back and see the whole of the tragedy instead of the bits and pieces normally witnessed by firefighters.

“As PIO, I had a chance to look at the layers and decide what could’ve been done differently. As investigators got to the scene, I real- ized there were no smoke detectors; (the girls) would’ve heard that while there was still just a small fire in the back part of the house,” said Bow- man. Realizing this, Bowman said, “I started talking to other guys, talked to chief, and came up with the Early Detection program.”

Bowman raised close to $30,000 from the public, including churches, youth groups, and businesses. “I’d go talk to people. I got donations and solicited companies to sell us smoke detectors at their cost or at a discount, and we bought batteries,” he said. “We’ve cov- ered sixteen communities in three counties, and have installed close to 7,000 smoke detectors.”

Oprah Winfrey, through KFSN, the local ABC affiliate, highlighted the Early Detection program on her then-new reality show, “The Big Give.” With a generous donation of $10,000, Oprah challenged Bow-man and the program to reach inside themselves and take their cause to a higher level. Bowman, Escalante, and countless volunteers, both firefighters and civilians, brought the challenge to fruition.

“We covered four communities and nearly 5,000 homes in one day,” said Bowman. “Ninety percent of Fresno County now has a working smoke detector.”

Sharing Her Story

The tragedy has brought together valor and victim, “one of the most important aspects of the program,” said Bowman. “The mother of the two kids has been a martyr for this program. She’s been with us along every step of the way.”

“I go house to house too,” said Escalante. “It helps that I’m Spanish-speaking. I join a team of firefighters and we go. I talk to the residents and tell them my story and how important it is to have a smoke detector.”

All too often, says Escalante, people think that a fire-related tragedy won’t happen to them, or conclude that the noise of a smoke alarm isn’t worth the hassle. But statistics tell a different story. Since the inception of the Early Detection program, three houses bearing newly installed smoke detectors have gone up in smoke, alerting each family to safety. “That woke me up,” said Bowman. “The (Early Detec- tion) system is working.”

Tarpey Village, located in the southern part of Clovis, is the last remaining county island for Bowman, Escalante, and their team to outfit with smoke detectors and batteries before heading into main- tenance mode. The team asks that the citizens of Tarpey keep on the lookout for notices heralding the onslaught of firefighters for the Early Detection program and requesting cooperation between volunteers and citizens. Aside from installing smoke detectors, the volunteers will also replace batteries and answer questions about the program and the importance of having working smoke detectors in the home.

Residents of Tarpey or any other community in Fresno County interested in more information about the Early Detection program can visit FresnoCountyFire.org or call headquarters at 559.485.7500.

Touching Hearts

Escalante is thankful for her son, who has been a beacon of hope for her through this nightmare. Aside from Bowman’s, her story has cap- tured

the heart of Nathan Magsig, former mayor of Clovis. “He helped us a lot. Besides a lot of good support from the community, he had people come in to decorate the (new) house,” said Escalante. “He and Mike were our angels.”

Legislator Juan Arambula was also touched by Escalante’s story, and escorted her to Sacramento, where they spoke to California legisla- tors. Assembly Bill 1812, signed into law last year, was directly related to the Early Detection program and states in part, “…individual taxpayers are allowed to contribute amounts in excess of their tax liability for the support of specified funds or accounts, including, among others, the California Firefighters’ Memorial Fund and the California Peace Officer Memorial Foundation Fund.”

A woman with an experienced, heartache-tinged voice, Escalante pleads with the average citizen, “If your smoke alarm goes off, get out. And change the smoke detector batteries. It could save your life.”

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