Turn Those Clocks Back Tonight; And Change Batteries While You're At It

This weekend we will fall back to standard time so don't forget to set your clocks one hour behind when you head to bed tonight.

Indeed, Daylight Saving Time ends Sunday at 2 a.m., New Jersey time..

Both firefighters and the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission remind consumers that the occasion is a perfect time  to replace batteries in smoke detectors and in carbon monoxide alarms.

"Safeguard your family by putting new batteries in your smoke and carbon monoxide alarms this weekend," said CPSC's Acting Chairman Nancy Nord. "Properly working smoke and CO alarms can alert you to a fire or poisonous carbon monoxide in your home and give you valuable escape time."

The CPSC said the estimated annual average of 378,700 fires, 2,740 deaths, 13,090 injuries, and $5.6 billion in property losses that are associated with residential fires underscore the importance of new batteries.

Daylight Saving Time, designed to give more light during summertime hours, is believed to be a good energy saving tool. It'll be back March 13, 2011.

The date of the time switch was changed a few years ago. In 2005, President Bush signed the Energy Policy Act of 2005, extending Daylight Saving Time to start the second Sunday in March and end the first Sunday in November. 

More emergency tips can found on the state's Office of Emergency Management website at http://www.state.nj.us/njoem/plan/kit-plan.html

Want to learn more about the history of Daylight Saving Time? Visit the Naval Oceanography Portal website for details.