Fire officials warn MA residents to check for expired alarms. Why now?

Fire officials across the state are warning Massachusetts residents their household smoke detectors may no longer be reliable.

“Smoke alarms are like any other appliance — they don’t last forever,” said Brockton Fire Chief Brian Nardelli , who serves as vice president of the Fire Chiefs Association of Massachusetts (FCAM), during a press conference Thursday, Oct. 9, at Brockton's Central Fire Station on Pleasant Street.

In 2015, the state updated its fire safety code requiring replacement smoke alarms have a sealed, 10-year battery. The requirement, officials said, reduced the chance residents accidentally disable devices during false alarms, or remove batteries for use in other devices.

Ten years later, however, batteries in many of those devices are now nearing the end of their li