August 26, 2020 –
Olympia – In 2019, 54 people were killed in residential fires in Washington State. Approximately 70% of those fatalities occurred in homes without working smoke alarms.
The Washington State Fire Marshal advises residents that the Residential Code of Washington requires Sellers involved in a real estate transaction provide a working smoke alarm to the Buyer.
Section 3 (b) of RCW 43.44.110 states that “for any dwelling unit sold on or after July 1, 2019, that does not have at least one smoke detection device, the seller shall provide at least one smoke detection device in the dwelling unit before the buyer or any other person occupies the dwelling unit following such sale.”
Failure to provide a working smoke alarm shall be punished by a fine of not more than two hundred dollars.
For more information, call the State Fire Marshal’s Office at (360) 596-3929.
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