By Jen Longaecker
Public Information Officer and Social Media Coordinator
You have likely heard by now that the State Fire Marshal Division (SFMD) will be working hard over the next several years to reduce smoking-related fire deaths across the state.
You have likely also heard that we need your help.
Smoking is the leading cause of fatal fires in Minnesota. We know that. What we don’t know is how to change smokers’ behavior. We need them to smoke outside and discard their cigarettes in a sturdy container filled with sand and water. We need them to avoid smoking while using oxygen and while under the influence of drugs and alcohol.
To reach smokers, we need to be creative. SFMD staff are brainstorming ways to get our message to the people who need to hear it most.
One of the most obvious places to start is on social media. We know you’re busy. We know that writing social media posts is likely not high on your priority list. So we want to make it easy for you to help us reduce smoking-related fire fatalities, which is why we encourage you to share our Facebook and Instagram posts and our tweets. Use them as your own. Please. Here are links to some of the posts:
We are working on a webpage that will include a slew of social media posts, along with images and videos (eventually), you can use on your own channels. Stay tuned for more on that. In the meantime, please follow the SFMD on Facebook and Twitter and the Department of Public Safety on Instagram.
Thanks for your help in reducing smoking-related fire deaths. It’s going to take all of us to make a difference.
