The American Red Cross educated residents about fire safety Saturday following two fatal fires in Brooklyn.

Volunteers installed more than 140 smoke detectors in Bed-Stuy apartments as part of their push to prevent fires and teach Brooklyn residents the importance of fire safety.

The Red Cross says batteries in the new smoke detectors last 10 years.

"They said it'll be good to have the Red Cross come check our units and make sure we were prepared," says resident Verna Gray, of Bed-Stuy. "It was a good idea because we weren't sure how many units had good working smoke detectors."

The Red Cross encourages families to perform escape drills on a regular basis as well as smoke detector tests to prepare for emergency situations.