Fire Fighter Inventor to Launch Home Safety Product

August 21, 2007 – Ventura County, CA Local 1364 member Greg Chavez, the winner of the ABC reality show, “American Inventor,” may soon be working with home-safety product manufacturer First Alert to determine the production and commercial viability of the invention that earned him the show’s grand prize of $1 million on August 1, 2007.

Chavez’s invention, the “Guardian Angel,” is designed to suppress Christmas tree fires, and features a small, pressurized tank of water wrapped to look like a Christmas package. A small hose is connected to the package, which is fed throughout the tree to a special tree-top angel.

The producers of ”American Inventor” introduced Chavez to First Alert. “While no final deals have been made, I am very excited about the possibility of working with such a reputable company,” says Chavez. “This is a dream that has been more than a decade in the making. It gets closer and closer to full realization every day.”

The device is triggered when it reaches 150 degrees Farenheit, releasing three gallons of water chased by carbon dioxide.

“The idea came before I became a fire fighter, while I was studying to become a fire sprinkler contractor,” explains Chavez. “I saw pictures of a family that had lost their home and their son to Christmas tree fire. It inspired me to do something to prevent future tragedies.”

After devoting much of his free time to making prototypes on his own, Chavez applied for “American Inventor” after watching the first season on television.

“It was very strange having cameras and microphones following me everywhere,” Chavez admits. “But overall, my experience with the show was incredible.

The magnitude of it finally hit Chavez when he went on stage for the season finale.. “The producers had arranged for both my family and the guys from Fire Station 30 in Thousand Oaks to be there. It was overwhelming.”

As Chavez works to manufacture and market the Guardian Angel he is already thinking about his next invention -- a series of decorative home sprinkler devices.

“A person dies every two hours in a residential fire in this country,” he says. “I want to change that statistic.”

Chavez is taking time off to see the project through its initial phases, but plans to return to the fire service as soon as he can.

“I have never wanted to be anything else but a fire fighter,” he says.