I'm standing in a local hardware store, looking over smoke alarms and remembering the reported cry of children: "Help! Help! We're burning, we're burning!"

Four girls and two boys, ages 3 to 14, perished in an apartment fire Sept. 3 in Chicago.

Two details stand out. Candles apparently caused the fire. The apartment did not have smoke detectors.

As I rummage through smoke detectors, the words of those burning children sear. And I wonder: Might the cheapest battery powered alarm in stock have saved even one life?

The answer, statistically speaking, is probably yes. The National Fire Protection Association says 96 percent of U.S. households have at least one smoke detector.

The association also says that roughly half of all home fire deaths occur in the small percentage of households that don't have alarms.

The least expensive detector I see includes a 9-volt battery, a mounting bracket, an 85-decibel horn and a three-year warranty.

For $4.97, plus tax, this device could have been a lifesaver.

"A smoke detector is not guaranteed to save your life," says District Fire Chief Randy Jenkins. "But it makes a significant difference."

According to Jenkins, 13 people in San Antonio have died in 10 home fires since December 2005. In nine of the homes, there was no smoke alarm.

In one tragic stretch, five people died from three house fires over six days in late November. None of the homes was equipped with smoke detectors.

One victim was former state Sen. Frank Madla.

"It really surprises me they didn't find any detectors" in Madla's home, says state Sen. Eddie Lucio of Brownsville. "He was a man of great responsibility."

Lucio hopes Madla's death raises awareness about the importance of detectors.

"The first thing I did," he says, "was call my mother, who lives alone, to see what condition her smoke detectors were in."

Josefa Lucio, an 82-year-old widow, had turned her alarms off. Why? When the batteries ran low, she heard a loud, piercing warning.

"We addressed that issue right away," Eddie says.

The detectors in Josefa's Brownsville home have new batteries. The detectors are on.

After Madla died, Doris Sanchez, press secretary for Eddie Lucio, phoned her son with the news.

"His house already had smoke alarms," Sanchez said, "but he went out and bought extras."

Jenkins says every home ought to have at least two smoke detectors. Others recommend one alarm for every bedroom, hallway and living area.

Most come with a mounting plate. They don't take long to install. Five, 10 minutes, tops.

Jenkins says detectors would make a great Christmas gift. No matter the season, everyone should get one.

In July, a house fire in Chickasha, Okla., killed a family of seven. The victims, some found by windows, apparently trying to escape, were overcome by smoke

The one-story house had smoke detectors — but none were working when the fire broke out at 5 a.m.

Nonworking smoke detectors are common. The National Fire Protection Association says homes with nonworking alarms outnumber those with no detectors.

Some allow batteries to die. Others disconnect them and fail to buy new ones.

Jenkins recommends changing batteries twice a year. Every time you change your clocks, change your batteries.

I changed a smoke detector battery in my home the other day. Like Josefa Lucio, I loathe the sharp, piercing sound a low battery emits. But thank God for the warning.

Madla did not get a warning.

The six screaming children in Chicago did not get a warning.

The seven family members in Chickasha did not get a warning.

One warning can save a life. It doesn't cost much. Only five dollars and change.