DTE Energy : Foundation doubles support of life-saving smoke alarm campaign

DETROIT, October 25, 2016 - The DTE Energy Foundation, the philanthropic arm of DTE Energy, is providing a $250,000 grant to the American Red Cross of Michigan for ongoing support of its life-saving, Home Fire Campaign. The campaign will help make communities safer by providing essential equipment and education to thousands of families statewide.

DTE Energy employee volunteers, in partnership with the Red Cross, will make in-home visits to install smoke alarms and provide fire escape planning education to thousands of families throughout Michigan, as part of the Red Cross' nationwide initiative.

'The DTE Energy Foundation is proud to partner with the American Red Cross in support of its Home Fire Campaign, which allows us to reach some of Michigan's most vulnerable residents to help save lives, reduce injuries and educate families on what to do if there is a fire,' said Faye Nelson, vice president, DTE Energy, and board chair and president, DTE Energy Foundation. 'Safety is a key priority at DTE Energy. The well-being and safety of our employees, our customers and our neighborhoods are essential to vitality of our state.'

Recently, the Home Fire Campaign saved the lives of a Detroit-area grandmother and her teenage grandson when they escaped a devastating home fire. Volunteers from DTE Energy, in coordination with the Red Cross, installed smoke alarms and provided fire escape planning at the family's home last September. These are the two most recent 'saves' credited to the campaign, which is responsible for saving at least 111 lives nationally thus far. In 2015, the DTE Energy Foundation invested $100,000 in the campaign, which provided more than 6,000 smoke detectors that were installed in more than 1,000 homes in Detroit and Monroe.

The five-year campaign kicked off across the country in October 2014, with a goal of reducing the number of home fire deaths and injuries by 25 percent. Working with local fire departments and community groups across the United States, the Red Cross is installing smoke alarms in homes in neighborhoods with the highest risk for home fires. In the last two years, more than half a million smoke alarms have been installed as part of the campaign. As of August 31, the Red Cross and 3,600 partners have reached more than 591,000 people through home visits in 7,300 cities and towns all across the country. The Red Cross also has reached more than 581,000 youth through fire safety and preparedness programs.

'Our main goal of this campaign is to save lives,' said Kimberly Burton, Red Cross Regional Chief Executive Officer. 'Installing smoke alarms in high risk areas and teaching families how to prevent a fire in their home is in line with our mission to help alleviate suffering and with this increased financial support, we're looking forward to helping even more people keep their loved ones safe.'

Michigan Region Home Fire Campaign Highlights:

• Installing more than 10,000 smoke alarms
• Conducting more than 3,800 in-home visits
• Creating more than 2,800 evacuation plans
• Positively impacting nearly 10,000 residents in communities across Michigan

http://www.redcross.org/local/michigan/home-fire-campaign

The Home Fire Campaign is informed by data from the Federal Emergency Management Agency's U.S. Fire Administration, which hosts the National Fire Incident Reporting System. The system is the world's largest, national database of fire incident information and contains information on more than 75 percent of all reported fires in the United States. Each year, 82 percent of U.S. fire deaths and 76 percent of all fire injuries occur in the home, according to the U.S. Fire Administration.

For More Info: http://www.redcross.org/local/michigan/home-fire-campaign or call and leave a smoke alarm installation request, at: 313-494-2727.

About the DTE Energy Foundation: The DTE Energy Foundation is the philanthropic arm of DTE Energy, continuing the legacy of community support and involvement of its electric and natural gas utilities, which serve 2.2 million electric customers in Southeast Michigan and 1.2 million natural gas customers in Michigan. In 2015, the DTE Energy Foundation provided $15 million in grant support to nonprofits throughout the company's service territories. As one of Michigan's leading corporate citizens, DTE Energy is a force for growth and prosperity in the 450 Michigan communities it serves in a variety of ways, including philanthropy, volunteerism and economic progress. http://www.dteenergy.com/foundation

About the American Red Cross: The American Red Cross shelters, feeds and provides emotional support to victims of disasters; supplies about 40 percent of the nation's blood; teaches skills that save lives; provides international humanitarian aid; and supports military members and their families. The Red Cross is a not-for-profit organization that depends on volunteers and the generosity of the American public to perform its mission. For more information, please visit redcross.org or visit us on Twitter at @RedCross.