The numbers are startling. Kentucky has already seen fifty-six fire deaths this year, two this week alone. The latest was a woman killed in her Laurel County home Wednesday morning. In twenty of those cases, the working smoke detector wasn't properly installed.

When you add in the fact that Winter is usually the deadliest season for fires in Kentucky, you can see why state officials are worried. Now Walmart and the State Fire Marshal's Office is teaming up to prevent more tragedies from happening

In Montgomery County, fire officials have been working for the last year to raise awareness about this issue.

"We've put in probably 1,500 over the last year or more", says Chief Larry Potter with the Montgomery Co. Fire Department.

Last winter in Montgomery County firefighters were hit hard with two major house fires.

"Last Christmas we had four fatalities with children over in Mt. Sterling", says Chief Larry Potter.

Three young boys, Timmy, Wayne, and Brandon Elam and their 17-year-old cousin Shirley Rothwell were killed in a fire on Christmas Eve. A week later there was another deadly fire. Inside the Montgomery County home was an older man, Harvey Caudill. In both cases fire officials say it appears the victims were sleeping and there were no smoke detectors.

"That type of tragedy brings it really home and our firefighters have worked hard to try to get these in the homes of the people", says Chief Larry Potter.

It's tragedies like these that have local Walmarts in Kentucky donating more than nine-thousand smoke detectors to the State Fire Marshal to distribute. It's an act they believe will make a difference.

"What we anticipate as the outcome of this is a reduction in the number of fire fatalities that we see across the state", says Bill Swope, the State Fire Marshal.

As for the smoke detectors, they will be installed throughout the month of October. The priority will be getting them to elderly residents and lower income families with children. You can contact your local fire department or the State Fire Marshal's Office for more information on how to receive one.