EASTPOINTE, Mich. – A woman from Eastpointe was one of the youngest volunteers installing smoke alarms on Saturday.
Mia Radosavac lost her entire family to a house fire in 2018, and she is determined to prevent another family from experiencing a similar tragedy.
Radosavac was 16-years-old when her parents and younger sister died in the home during a fire in Eastpointe.
The teenager was the sole survivor.
“I think this would be a lifelong passion something that affects me for the rest of my life,” says Radosavac.
Her childhood home had smoke alarms installed in the house the day of the fire, but they didn’t work.
Read more: Mother, father and daughter killed in Eastpointe fire
Radosavac and her godfather Joe Zago volunteer with the Amerian Red Cross installing smoke alarms with the Detroit Fire Department.
“I can’t tell you how proud I am. I remember when it first happened and seeing the burns on your hands. I’m just so glad you’re here,” Zago tells his granddaughter.
Mary Lynn Foster from the American Red Cross tells us that fatalities can be reduced by half if the home has working smoke alarms. The American Red Cross has a mission to install 50,000 free smoke alarms nationwide in their Sound the Alarm campaign.
Below are two escape plan maps recommended by the American Red Cross
Families can pre-register with the American Red Cross to have smoke alarms installed for free. So far Detroit Fire Department’s Engine 59 crew has installed smoke alarms in homes near West Grand River Avenue and Southfield Freeway on Detroit’s west side.
Click here to request a smoke alarm for your home
Foster expresses the importance of testing your smoke alarms once a month to ensure they are working.
“A lot of people have to realize that anything can happen, not just house fires. Make sure to tell people you love them,” states Radosavac.
Related: Eastpointe girl who lost family in house fire helps get smoke detectors into homes