FIRE chief Lewis Ramsay is a man on a mission.

This week Strathclyde Fire and Rescue (SFR) launched an ambitious campaign with the aim of cutting accidental fire deaths to zero.

It's a tough target but the assistant chief officer believes it can be done – with help from everyone in local communities.

Mr Ramsay said: "We have made great steps in terms of reducing the number of people who have fires in their homes over the past 10 to 20 years.

"We are still getting 100 fire deaths a year across Strathclyde and last year there were 22 of what we call preventable fire deaths.

"I'm in the business of saving lives so I'm going to be optimistic and say that's what I'm driving towards – zero accidental fire deaths."

During the past five years, house fires in Glasgow have dropped by 13%, from 990 in 2001/02 to 866 in 2011/12, and, as told in last night's edition of the Evening Times, the fire service's campaign to cut this total further is spear-headed by adverts featuring serving fire fighters.

It is hoped the appeal will rally locals to help their friends and neighbours in what Mr Ramsay said is a "call to action".

Mr Ramsay added: "We spoke to communities and found out more about what they thought about last year's adverts.

"People we asked said there absolutely was value in the campaign and we are looking forward to using it again after the success of last year.

"We asked people in commun-ities how they would feel about this kind of message. We also asked people if they know their neighbours.

"Two out of three people said they know their neighbours so there's a sense of community out there and the question is how we invigorate that."

Although accidental fire deaths have dropped drama-tically in recent years – down to 22 in Glasgow last year – there are still people failing to heed the fire safety message.

According to fire service profiling, the typical victim of an accidental fire is aged over 50, male, living alone and is usually a heavy drinker or smoker.

This year's safety message also targets elderly people and people living lifestyles affected by drink or drugs. Mr Ramsay added: "I regret to say that because of reckless lifestyles and unsafe things that go in people's homes all fire deaths are unavoidable unless we work with others.

"I've been in this job long enough to know that there are some types of people who will not ask for that help but there will be somebody out there who knows they need help. This campaign is not about the worried well. We know we can and have reached them. Sometimes people don't know they need us."

And it's this area of the campaign that fire bosses really hope will make a difference.

They are calling for everyone to keep an eye out for their neighbours and to call them with any concerns.

Fire fighters from every fire station are trained to carry out home fire safety visits. They will come to your home and fit free smoke alarms, give advice on how to avoid fires and design escape routes to be used if the worst happens.

And Mr Ramsay believes that these visits are the key to cutting accidental fire deaths.

He added: "Sometimes people die of fire in their home at their own hands or at the hands of another. But for someone who has had an accident in their home we see that as being completely avoidable.

"The reality of these fires is that one fifth do not have a working smoke alarm. It's a simple device that can make the difference between life and death. We give them away for nothing."

As well as relying on community members to flag up potential fire victims firefighters also work with social services and housing associations. They are also keen to hear from elderly residents who they can help with free smoke alarms and advice.

Mr Ramsay said: "Scotland has an ageing population and we are going to see more people beyond the age of 50 and there are more elderly people living alone.

"There is something very strong about appealing to someone's sense of community.

"It is a call to action."

catriona.stewart@eveningtimes.co.uk