It's nearly time to 'Spring Forward.'

At 2 a.m. Sunday, we'll be springing our clocks forward—and losing an hour of the day, for daylight saving time. The good news: sunset will be an hour later.

You may have noticed the annual tradition of daylight saving time has crept forward a bit. We used to spring forward on the first Sunday in April and fall back on last Sunday in October. But a couple years ago, Congress changed the date—adding more daylight saving time to the calendar. This year, it will run from March 11 until Nov. 4.

The day typically serves as a reminder from local fire departments, like the Greenfield Fire Department, for citizens to check their smoke detectors and replace their batteries. According to the National Fire Protection Association, even though nearly all homes have a smoke alarm, they were absent in 28 percent of homes that experienced a fire, and inoperable in about half.

In addition, 38 percent of all home fire deaths resulted from fires in homes with no smoke alarms, while 24 percent resulted from fires in homes in which smoke alarms were present but did not operate.  

If you're not sure if your smoke detector is in working order, even with a new battery in place, contact Greenfield Fire Department for assistance.