🚀 go-pugleaf

mrmcafee(nospam) wrote:
> 
> 
> gringogirl wrote:
>> I wonder if American Citzens can get free smoke detectors from the
>> chicago fire department?
>>  remember this "tradegy " happened to an illegal  mexican  who was in
>> the United States for 16 years and found time to give birth to 9 anchor
>> babies-
>>  she had plenty of time to buy a smoke detector
>>
>>
>> Mindful of tragedy, consulate offers smoke alarms
>>
>> By Emma Graves Fitzsimmons
>> Tribune staff reporter
>> Published October 11, 2006
>>
>>
>> While applying for an identification card Tuesday at the Mexican
>> Consulate in Chicago, Marta Mendoza received a free smoke detector from
>>
>> a firefighter.
>>
>>
>> She said she was relieved to have one after six children of Mexican
>> immigrants died in a Rogers Park fire a month ago.
>>
>>
>> "It is my first one," Mendoza, a Mexican immigrant with two young
>> children, said in Spanish as she held the smoke detector. "I've been
>> scared. I don't want the same thing to happen to my family."
>>
>>
>> The Chicago Fire Department began a program Tuesday to distribute fire
>> detectors at the consulate, 204 S. Ashland Ave., to educate the city's
>> largest immigrant population about fire safety.
>>
>>
>> "We don't want another tragedy," said Consul General Carlos Manuel
>> Sada, referring to the Rogers Park fire as he passed out more than 70
>> boxes. "These are necessary."
>>
>>
>> It is important to make sure every household has a smoke detector
>> because there have already been 29 deaths in Chicago this year in homes
>>
>> without one, said Eve Rodriguez, a Fire Department spokeswoman.
>>
>>
>> The department, which already provides free fire detectors at 100 fire
>> stations and 50 ward offices, added the Mexican Consulate to the list
>> of locations after receiving a request from the staff. The program is
>> funded by private donations to the department. Fire detectors come with
>>
>> batteries and instructions in Spanish.
>>
>>
>> Six children died Sept. 3 in a fire caused by a candle in a home that
>> had been without power for months because the family could not pay the
>> bill. Chicago fire officials have said they found no smoke detectors in
>>
>> the unit.
>>
>>
>> The Mexican Consulate in Chicago flew the children's paternal
>> grandparents from Mexico to attend services and provided them with a
>> humanitarian visa, consulate officials said
>>
>>
>> Fire detectors will be available at the reception desk at the Mexican
>> Consulate, and the Fire Department will begin holding weekly classes to
>>
>> teach people how to use them this month, officials said.
>>
>>
>> The service is a part of the consulate's attempt to reach out to the
>> more than 1.5 million Mexican immigrants in Illinois beyond just
>> issuing documents and filing paperwork, said Ambar Gilmore, a
>> spokeswoman for the consul general. According to the 2000 U.S. census,
>> there are 582,028 Mexican immigrants living in Chicago.
>>
>>
>> The consulate offers free legal advice and a class on opening a bank
>> account, along with providing flu vaccines and testing for sexually
>> transmitted diseases, Gilmore said.
>>
>>
>> "It's an office, but we help them out with every problem they
>> encounter," Gilmore said. "We want to educate our people and give them
>> a home away from home."
>>
>>
>> Maria Gomez, a Mexican immigrant who lives in the Irving Park
>> neighborhood, said she plans to tell family members to go to the
>> consulate to get a smoke detector of their own. Many Mexican immigrants
>>
>> do not know they need one because fire detectors are less common across
>>
>> the border, she said.
>>
>>
>> "Sometimes, you have so many things going on. But these [smoke
>> detectors] are good at grabbing your attention," she said. "I'm going
>> to tell my children this sound means danger."
> 
> I learn something every day! I had no idea that a smoke detector could 
> serve as a US visa. Who would have figured!
> 
A rotting fish or lettuce leaf with shit on it will serve as a US Visa 
for Mexicans.