Lithuania’s fire safety agency reports only half of residents have working smoke detectors

Just over half of Lithuania’s residents have working smoke detectors in their homes, despite a legal requirement for all households to install them, a representative of the Fire Protection and Rescue Department (PAGD) told LRT Radio on Thursday.

“The situation with smoke detectors in Lithuania is poor,” said Aurimas Gudžiauskas, a PAGD spokesperson. “Only slightly more than half of the country’s population has properly functioning smoke detectors, even though they are mandatory in all residential buildings.”

Gudžiauskas noted that while the installation of smoke detectors saw an annual increase after the 2018 mandate, progress stalled at around 60 percent. “For several years now, we’ve observed no significant change—about 60 percent of residents have detectors, but a portion still fails to comply,” he said.

This year, 53 people have died in fires, with nearly all fatalities occurring in homes lacking smoke detectors, according to PAGD data. In 2025, Lithuania recorded nearly 8,000 fires—a 3.7 percent rise from previous years—though the death toll of 70 was the lowest in seven years.

Last year, fire safety officials visited over 20,000 apartments and houses during prevention campaigns, installing nearly 2,000 autonomous smoke detectors. Authorities also inspected 8,471 homes of vulnerable individuals—including the elderly, disabled, and single parents—equipping 1,897 with detectors.