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LANCASTER FIRE
DEPARTMENT NEWS - 2008
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December 16, 2008
In-District
Structure Fire, 393 Aurora Street: Residential Structure Fire
Partial
Audio from December 16 Aurora Street fire, courtesy Erie County Fire
Wire (pauses removed) Click Here
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December 4, 2008
(Lancaster Bee)
Natural gas
line break leads to warning
By Lisa A.
Johnson, Editor
The Lancaster Fire Department
is reminding residents not to use natural gas pipes as clotheslines after
an incident Monday morning in the village.
Fire and police personnel were
called around 7:15 a.m. to a South Irwinwood
Road home after a gas leak was reported. Second Assistant Chief and department
public relations officer Scott M. Kuhlmey said the odor of natural gas
was detected a few doors away from the home, and nearby residents were
evacuated while the affected home was ventilated.
Once inside, Kuhlmey said that firefighters found clothes hanging
on a gas line in the basement and that the added weight caused brackets
and the line to snap.
“That’s the second time we’ve had that
happen in the past couple of months,” he said, adding that the
last such call was on East Drullard Avenue.
Kuhlmey issued a plea to residents not to hang anything on
natural gas pipes because of the potential for them to beak, causing a
home to fill with natural gas and a risk for an explosion. The problem could become worse if a
pipe breaks while a home is empty, allowing more time for gas to fill
the home.
“There’s an inherent danger of a line breaking
while no one is home,” he said.
Gas leaks not only affect the homeowner or renter, but
also neighbors and police and fire personnel because the gas is highly
volatile.
“It has the potential to become a much larger
issue,” Kuhlmey said. For
more information, visit www.lancasterfd.org or call
683-1903. Anyone who detects the
odor of natural gas should call 911.
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November 13,
2008 (Lancaster Bee)
Village of
Lancaster fire displaces residents of four apartments
A fire that spread through a Lancaster home Nov. 6 and
caused $100,000 in damage appears to be electrical in origin.
The blaze started around 8:45 a.m. in the ceiling of the
lower right apartment at 3439 Walden Ave., near Ellicott Place, in the
village, Lancaster Police Capt. Timothy Murphy said. An electrical problem ignited the fire,
which spread to the upstairs front apartment, he added.
Personnel from Lancaster, Depew, Bowmansville, Twin
District and Millgrove fire departments battled the blaze for 45
minutes to an hour, Murphy said, adding that the residents of the four
apartments in the building have been displaced and were aided by the
American Red Cross.
Damages to the structure and contents were estimated at
$100,000.
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Firefighters battle a blaze around 8:45 a.m. Nov. 6 at 3439
Walden Ave., near Ellicott Place, in the Village of Lancaster. Investigators have determined that an
electrical problem ignited the fire, which caused $100,000 damage.
Photos
by David F. Sherman, Bee Group newspapers
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November 8, 2008
07:05 AM
Passer-by
alerts residents
to apartment fire
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A passer-by who stopped and banged on two second-floor
apartment doors has been credited with helping get everyone out safely
from a fire that extensively damaged a Walden Avenue apartment house
Thursday morning, Lancaster police and fire officials said.
Everyone escaped safely from the four apartments at 3439 Walden Ave.,
as firefighters responded to an 8:49 a. m. alarm. Officials are
investigating a possible electrical cause for the blaze.
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November 6, 2008
In-District
Structure Fire, 3439 Walden Avenue: Apartment Building
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October 9, 2008
(Lancaster Bee)
October 12, 2008
(Lancaster Source)
READY FOR
INSPECTION – The Lancaster Fire Department held its annual
ceremonial inspection Sept. 23 at Firemen's Park. Department members and apparatus were
inspected by the Fire Chief's, members of the Village Board, as well as
visiting Fire Chief's from Bowmansville and Depew Fire
Departments. Officers from LVAC
also attended. Afterwards, there
was a public procession from Firemen's Park to the fire department
headquarters on Broadway.
Photo
courtesy LFD photographer John A. Robinson Jr.
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October 9, 2008
(Lancaster Bee)
October 12, 2008
(Lancaster Source)
Lancaster Fire
Department reminds residents about escape plans, safety
If a fire broke out in your
home, do you know how much time you would have to get out?
Unfortunately, no one knows for
sure. According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), more
than one out of every four American households
who made an estimate thought they would have at least six minutes
before a fire in their home would become life-threatening. The time
available is often less, according to Scott M. Kuhlmey, assistant chief
of the Lancaster Fire Department.
While most people feel
safe in their homes, the reality is that home fires are much more
common than people might think. There were nearly 400,000 home fires
reported in 2006 in the United States, resulting in more than 2,500
civilian deaths and 12,500 civilian injuries. Home fires caused 80% of civilian deaths and 76% of
injuries, Kuhlmey said.
In a perfect world, we would be able to
prevent all home fires. In reality, we can be vigilant, but there are no
guarantees. Any emergency can affect one’s ability to think
clearly, but during a fire, smoke and other physical factors can
literally inhibit your ability to react. Preparing for the unexpected
is difficult. But when it comes to home fires, minutes, even seconds,
can mean the difference between life and death. That’s why having
well-practiced fire escape plan is vital to your families safety.
October 5-11 is Fire Prevention Week. While
this year’s theme is “Prevent Home Fires,” we want
Lancaster residents to be prepared. Lancaster Fire Department is
encouraging local families to make a fire
escape plan and practice it.
Fire is unpredictable. But
preparation in the form of a well-practiced escape plan – at
least twice a year – can help keep you and your family safe, and
potentially save lives.
The following are additional
tips to consider as we observe Fire Prevention Week:
Escape Planning
- Install a smoke alarm on every
level of your home and have one inside each bedroom and outside of
each sleeping area. For the best protection, interconnect
alarms so that when one sounds, they all sound.
- Test smoke alarms at least
once a month.
- Develop a fire escape plan
that identifies two ways out of each room and a family meeting
place outside.
- Make sure your plan allows for
any specific needs in your household. If everyone knows what
to do, everyone can get out quickly.
- Practice using the plan, at
least twice a year. If everyone knows that everyone else is
ready to exit quickly, no one will lose precious time trying to
help someone who doesn’t need help.
- Some children
and adults may not awaken to the sound of the smoke alarm.
They may need help to wake up.
Cooking
with Care
- Stay in the kitchen when
you are frying, grilling, or broiling food. If you leave the
kitchen for even a short period time, turn off the stove.
- Keep
anything that can catch fire – potholders, oven mitts,
wooden utensils, paper or plastic bags – away form your
stovetop.
- Wear short,
close fitting or tightly rolled sleeves when cooking. Loose
clothing can dangle onto stove burners and catch fire.
- Always keep
an oven mitt and lid handy. If a small fire starts in a pan on the
stove, put on the oven mitt and smother the flames by carefully
sliding the lid over the pan. Turn off the burner. Don’t
remove the lid until it is completely cool.
Everyday
Electrical Safety
- Keep lamps, light
fixtures, and light bulbs away from anything that can burn, such
as lamp shades, bedding, curtains, and clothing.
- Replace cracked
and damaged electrical cords.
- Use
extension cords for temporary wiring only. Consider having
additional circuits or receptacles added by a qualified
electrician.
- Homes with
young children should have tamper-resistant electrical
receptacles.
- Call a
qualified electrician or landlord if you have recurring problems
with blowing fuses or tripping circuit breakers, discolored or
warm wall outlets, flickering lights or a burning or rubbery smell
coming from an appliance.
Healthy
Heating
- Install and maintain
carbon monoxide alarms to avoid risk of carbon monoxide poisoning.
- Maintain
heating equipment and chimneys by having them cleaned and
inspected every year by a qualified professional.
- Keep all
things that can burn, such as paper, bedding or furniture, at
least 3 feet away form heating equipment.
- Turn
portable space heaters off when you go to bed or leave the room.
- An oven
should not be used to heat a home.
Strike
Out Smoking-materials Fires
- If you smoke, choose fire-safe
cigarettes if they are available in your area.
- If you
smoke, smoke outside.
- Wherever you
smoke, use deep, sturdy ashtrays.
- Never smoke
in a home where oxygen is used.
- Keep matches
and lighters up high in a locked cabinet, out of the reach of children.
Candle
with Caution
- Keep candles at least 12
inches form anything that can burn.
- Use sturdy,
safe candleholders.
- Never leave
a burning candle unattended. Blow out candles when you leave a
room.
- Avoid using candles
in bedrooms and sleeping areas.
- Use
flashlights for emergency lighting.
Fire
Safety 101
- Install smoke alarms in
every bedroom, outside each sleeping area and on every level of
the home. For the best protection, interconnect all smoke alarms
throughout the home. When one sounds, they all sound.
- Test smoke
alarms at least once a month using the test button.
- Replace
smoke alarms every 10 years.
- Make sure
everyone can hear the sound of the smoke alarms.
- Have a home
fire escape plan. Know at least two ways out of every room, if
possible, and a meeting place outside. Practice your escape plan
twice a year.
- When the
smoke alarm sounds, get out and stay out.
- If you are building or
remodeling your home, consider a residential fire sprinkler
system.
Fire safety checklists, escape planning
tools and other fire prevention materials can be found at www.LancasterFD.org. Groups interested in touring the
firehouse can call 683-1903. Individuals interested in learning
more about the Lancaster Fire Department can visit www.LancasterFD.org.
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September 25,
2008 (Lancaster Bee)
September 28,
2008 (Lancaster Source)
Fire Department
reminds residents about home hazards
How many times have you left the house in
the morning and wondered, “Did I turn off the stove?” With
our busy lives, the safety of our homes and families are sometimes
relegated to the back of our minds – an afterthought as we hop in
the car to start the day.
Lancaster Fire Department wants you to make
sure that the stove burner is turned off or the damaged electrical cord
you’ve been meaning to fix is your top priority during Fire
Prevention Week, October 5-11. The theme of this year’s campaign,
“Prevent Home Fires,” focuses on preventing the leading causes of home
fires – cooking, heating and electrical equipment, and smoking
materials.
According to the latest statistics
from the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), there were an estimated 396,000 reported
home structure fires in 2006, resulting in 2,580 civilian deaths,
12,500 civilian injuries and $6.8 billion in direct damage in the
United States. Home fires caused 80%
of civilian deaths and 76% of injuries.
While the
statistics are daunting, most home fires are easily preventable when we
narrow our focus and take personal steps to increase our safety,
Assistant Fire Chief Scott M. Kuhlmey said. One way to do this is by
proactively combing through each room in your home to find signs of
danger and fix them. Lancaster Fire Department is encouraging residents
and their families to put their safety first by performing a home
hazards inspection during Fire Prevention Week. You can pick up a fire
inspection checklist at the Village of Lancaster Municipal Building,
5423 Broadway or by visiting www.LancasterFD.org.
There are
also a number of simple steps that you can put into action to keep your
home safe from fire:
- Cooking: Stay in the kitchen when you are frying, grilling, or
broiling food. If you leave the kitchen for even a short period
time, turn off the stove.
- Heating: Keep all things that can burn, such as paper,
bedding or furniture, at least 3 feet away form heating equipment.
- Electrical: Replace cracked and damaged electrical cords;
use extension cords from temporary wiring only. Consider having
additional circuits or receptacles added by a qualified
electrician.
- Smoking: If you smoke, smoke outside; wherever you smoke,
use deep, sturdy ashtrays.
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August 14, 2008
(Lancaster Bee)
Members
of the Lancaster Fire Department march in the Firemen’s Parade on
Friday during America’s Fair in Hamburg. Lancaster took first place for
Cadence, Class A.
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August 14, 2008
(Lancaster Bee)
Lancaster Fire Department outlines several
gasoline safety tips
Each
year gasoline causes several thousand household fires, many of which
result in injury and even death. It is helpful to remember gasoline is
a volatile liquid that is constantly releasing flammable vapors, which
are heavier than air and accumulate at the lowest point in an area. If
released inside a building, these vapors sink to floor level and spread
out across the room, and if these vapors make contact with an ignition
source a flash-fire will likely result.
Gasoline Safety Basics
- Keep gasoline out of
children's reach and sight, and never allow children to handle gas
- Never use gasoline inside
the home or as a cleaning agent
- Never use gasoline to wash
mechanical parts
- Never use gasoline to start
a fire in barbecue pits or cooking grills
- Never use gasoline as a
replacement for kerosene or diesel
- Do not use or store gasoline
near potential ignition sources, including gas-fired water heaters
that contain a pilot flame
- Follow all
manufacturers’ instructions when using electronics
(including all devices with batteries or connections to electrical
outlets) near gasoline
- Clean up spills
immediately and discard clean-up materials properly
In the Event of Gasoline Fire
- Leave the area
immediately, and call 911
- Do not attempt to extinguish
the fire
- Do not attempt to stop the
flow of gasoline
Gasoline Storage
- Store gasoline outside
in a garage or shed
- Never store gasoline in
glass, or in plastic milk jugs and other non-reusable plastic
containers
- Store gasoline in a
tightly closed metal or plastic container designed, manufactured,
and approved specifically for gasoline storage
- Store only the amount
of gasoline necessary to power equipment and machinery
Fueling and Handling Gasoline
- Do not smoke while handling
gasoline
- Use caution when
fueling machinery and automobile equipment
- Never fuel machinery or
equipment indoors, and always let it cool before refueling
- Place portable
gasoline containers on the ground before filling, and only fill
them outdoors
- Never fill portable
containers inside a vehicle or in the bed of a pick-up truck, to
prevent a static charge from developing
- Do not get in and out of
automobiles while fueling … Although rare, this movement
creates an electrical charge on your body that could spark a fire,
especially during dry weather conditions
Visit www.lancasterfd.org for more fire
safety tips and information.
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Partial
Audio from May 23 Irwinwood Rd fire, courtesy
Erie County Fire Wire (pauses removed) Click Here
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July 10, 2008 (Lancaster
Bee)
Vehicle Fire
Photo by James Lepard
Lancaster firefighters respond to a fully
involved fire around 7:30 p.m. Friday on West Drullard Avenue in the
Village of Lancaster. The
vehicle appeared to be a van or motor home, according to a police
report. A California license
plate was found inside, but a check revealed the number was not on
file. The vehicle was towed to the
Lancaster Police Department.
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June 22, 2008
Couch fire at the curb
St. John Street
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June 5, 2008
(Lancaster Bee)
Fire department fights
three blazes in four days
The Lancaster Fire Department recently had a busy week.
On Friday, May 23, a neighbor called 9.1.1. to report possible smoke coming from a vent at 139 Irwinwood in the Village of Lancaster. The Lancaster Fire Department was
alerted and on arrival, Assistant Fire Chief James Schaefer observed
heavy smoke coming from the multi-family residence. As the first arriving trucks
approached, fire was visible from the garage and the street quickly
became consumed with smoke.
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Vehicle Fire, 33 Legion
Pkwy Photo Credit: John
Robinson Jr.
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Assistant Chief and Incident Commander Scott M. Kuhlmey
requested mutual aid
from Twin District, Bowmansville and Depew Fire Departments. Initial reports from neighbors
indicated possible victims and animals in the residence. Interior fire crews entered and began
a search and also launched an aggressive fire attack. All occupants were later accounted
for and were not home at the time of the fire. One dog was rescued from the fire and
was given oxygen.
The Lancaster Volunteer Ambulance Corps assisted at the
scene with medical support. No
injuries were reported. Damage
was estimated at $50,000 to the structure and $20,000 to the
contents. The cause of the fire
remains under investigation.
On Saturday, May 24, Lancaster firefighters were
dispatched to a vehicle fire in the parking lot of the Elk's at 33
Legion Parkway in the Village of Lancaster. On arrival, firefighters found
individuals pushing the minivan away from the building and
unsuccessfully trying to douse flames with a fire extinguisher.
The vehicle, well involved in fire, was quickly
extinguished by crews of the Lancaster Fire Department.
A cigarette carelessly discarded into a wood box outside
of the building ignited the box, building awning, and the minivan. The building suffered minor fire
damage.
During the early hours of Monday, May 26, the Lancaster
Fire Department was again called out to the report of debris burning in
the roadway on Pleasant Avenue in the Village. As the fire department arrived they
observed a large pile of tree branches and debris on fire near Pleasant
Avenue and Elm Street.
Firefighters quickly extinguished the fire which appeared to
have been deliberately set.
According to reports from Lancaster Police Department, three
Lancaster High School students admitted to setting the fire after a DVD
showing three youths setting a blaze surfaced.
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7 News at 11
May 23, 2008
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May 23, 2008
In-District
Structure Fire, 139 Irwinwood: Residential
Structure Fire

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April 22, 2008
Lancaster Fire Department
elects new leaders
The Lancaster Fire Department held its annual election of
Department Officer’s on Monday, April 21.
Firematic Officers include Fire Chief John Burke, First
Assistant Chief James N. Robinson, Second Assistant Chief Scott M.
Kuhlmey, and Third Assistant Chief James Schaefer.
Administrative Officers include President Jerome Enser,
Vice President Tim Schaefer, Secretary Jody Volpe, Treasurer Norman
Piotrowski, Sergeant at Arms William Huff, Chaplain Albert Rinow, and Records Officer Carl Adolf.
An installation of officer’s ceremony will take
place on Saturday, April 28.
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Ambulance Accident in
Lancaster Sends Six to the Hospital
Updated: March
7, 2008 05:36 PM EST
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(Lancaster,
NY, March 7, 2008) - - The driver of an ambulance is facing charges in
an accident in Lancaster. Senior Correspondent Rich Newberg reports the
crash sent six people to the hospital.
A Rural
Metro Ambulance carrying a patient to the Erie County home struck a
Chevy van at Walden and Central in the Town of Lancaster.
Scott
Kuhlmey, Lancaster Asst. Fire Chief, "The occupants of the mini
van required extrication. There were three victims in the mini van and
there were three victims in the ambulance."
All
were taken to ECMC. Five of the six, including the patient in the
ambulance were later released. Lancaster Police say the ambulance
driver, 20 year old Erik Peasland of Buffalo
made a statement saying he ran the red light while heading east on
Walden Avenue. He is charged with wreckless
driving and passing a red light.
Lt.
Erin Myers, Lancaster Police Dept., "This ambulance was operating
in non-emergency mode and transporting a patient to the Erie County
Home and Infirmary, and he should have been observing traffic signals
just like every other vehicle."
The
ambulance struck the van carrying three teenagers. It took longer to
get the driver out, according to Lancaster Police Lt. Erin Myers.
Lt.
Erin Myers, Lancaster Police Dept., "All of the passengers were
removed easily accept for the driver. Had to remove the roof and part
of the door frame to cut him out of the vehicle."
18
year old Brian Hinton of Lockport is still hospitalized in fair
condition. Police say the Valero Gas Station nearby recorded the
accident on surveillance video. There was also a camera mounted on the
ambulance dash board.
Lt.
Erin Myers, Lancaster Police Dept., "I would say it's a good four
or five car lengths back that he had before it was red when he entered
the intersection."
The
front passenger in the van had a severe concussion. The back passenger
required 14 stitches to the head. Lt. Myers said the injuries were
light based on the amount of damage to the van. Rural Metro officials
had not comment today on the accident.
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Ambulance Involved in Crash
in Village of Lancaster
Updated: March
7, 2008 01:31 AM EST
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(Lancaster,
NY, March 6, 2008) - - Several people are recovering from an accident
involving an ambulance tonight.
The
Rural Metro ambulance and a minivan crashed at Walden Avenue and
Central in the Village.
First
responders used the "jaws of life" to free the victims from
the minivan.
"We
had three people inside the minivan and a driver, tech and patient in
the ambulance at the time," according to Scott Kuhlmey, Assistant
Chief, Lancaster Fire Department.
The
ambulance was transporting a patient back to the Erie County Home and
Infirmary at the time.
None
of the injuries appears to be life-threatening.
An
investigation was launched to determine what led to the crash.
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February 25,
2008 (Buffalo News)
WNY communities are saying
goodbye to their fire alarm boxes
As technology advances,
municipalities are snuffing out street corner alert system
By Irene Liguori
Updated:
02/25/08 9:27 AM
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The
bright red and white boxes with peaked “roofs” once dotted
street corners throughout the area — providing a lifeline at a
time when few people had telephones at home to report fires.
Today
they are a casualty of the 911 emergency system
and the ubiquitous cell phone.
Sometime
in the next 90 days, the Village of Lancaster will likely become one of
the last suburban municipalities to bid a fond goodbye to an American
icon: the street corner fire alarm box.
If
so, the Village of Depew will become the sole remaining suburban holdout
in Erie County relying on a fully functioning street box alarm system.
Depew’s dates to 1894 — the year of the village’s
incorporation.
“It’s
hard to let go, because it’s sort of a tradition — they
give you a warm, comfortable feeling,” said Lancaster Mayor
William G. Cansdale Jr., who remembers eyeing
his street corner fire alarm as a boy and wondering what it would be
like to pull that lever inside.
Lancaster’s
88 street alarm boxes — most fastened to rough wooden poles
encircled with red and white rings — sustained heavy damage in
the October 2006 surprise snowstorm. Federal dollars helped repair
some, but the Village Board remains torn about spending another $12,000
to fix the rest.
“We’re
waiting for the Fire Department to tell us what they think is in the
best interest of the community,” Cansdale
said. “We’re willing to go along with whatever the
department wants.”
Many
local fire departments abandoned their box alarm systems in the 1980s
and 1990s. Antique boxes tend to land in their fire museums or on eBay,
where on a recent day of Internet haggling, collectors offered between
$10 and $249 for these compact monuments to fire-fighting history.
Cities
like Atlanta, Chicago, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh have long since
dismantled their fire alarm box systems. But the boxes still have
staunch defenders in some large cities across the country.
New
York City still has them, though former Mayor Rudy Giuliani fought hard
for three years of his administration to ditch them.
A
federal judge ruled in 1997 that getting rid of the boxes violated the
civil rights of the city’s 65,000 deaf and hearing impaired
residents.
The
Boston Globe ran a lengthy story last month explaining why Beantown’s firefighters flatly refuse to
scrap the 1,259 fire box alarms that send hook and ladder companies
scurrying to a blaze.
“Technology
has advanced, but they still have a place,” John P. Henderson,
Boston’s Superintendent of Fire Alarms, is quoted as saying in
the Jan. 6 story by Globe staffer Emily Sweeney.
Boston’s
fire box system operates separately from electric and telephone lines
and isn’t affected by power outages, downed phone lines, bad cell
phone reception or radio interference, Henderson said. If a major
disaster knocked out power in Boston for several days and people
couldn’t charge cell phones, the boxes constitute a public safety
lifeline in a large city.
The
City of Buffalo still has about 450 working fire alarm boxes left in
service. Most of those are “master” boxes located inside of
schools, hospitals and nursing homes.
A
smattering of fire alarm boxes also continue to dot Buffalo street
corners, according to the Buffalo Fire Department’s Fire Alarm
Office. But most residential box alarms in Buffalo — like the one
at Broadway and Pine Street that alerted firefighters to the
spectacular 1986 church fire immortalized in Rich Blake’s
“The Day Donny Herbert Woke Up” — have long since
been dismantled.
In
many smaller towns, firefighters say, the antique boxes have outlived
their usefulness, generating too many false alarms and costing too much
to maintain.
Still,
they are remembered wistfully by fire departments that have scrapped
them.
Lockport
abandoned the box alarms lining its streets and protecting its schools
and nursing homes in the early 1990s, according to Capt. Michael
Collette.
“I
can still remember hearing those alarms come in — twice, then
three times, then twice for the nursing homes,” Collette said.
Inside
the boxes, which are wired in a series like some Christmas lights, a
notched code wheel turns and transmits a telegraph code whenever a fire
box’s lever is pulled. If it’s Box 37, three notches on the
wheel are followed by an empty interval and then by seven notches. In
days gone by, firefighters who heard those alarms knew just what box
triggered it.
Nowadays
the majority of fire calls come in to municipalities when people dial
911 on their cell phones or land lines. Pagers and sophisticated radio
systems are used to alert firefighters.
“We
prefer that people call in fires on a cell phone anyway,” said
Hamburg Police Chief Carmen Kesner,
“because they can give us up-to-the-second information about the
fire.”
In
Boston, Mass., a team of 20 firefighters is required to keep 1,700
street alarm boxes in working order. In villages like 11,000-resident
Lancaster, devoting manpower to maintain the street boxes and track
down spare parts has become too much of a chore and no longer makes
financial sense.
“We
phased out our fire alarm boxes three or four years ago,” said
North Tonawanda Fire Capt. William DeMonte.
Prior to that, a team of two to three firefighters was required to test
and tinker with the fire alarm boxes on a daily basis.
“That’s a cost,” he said.
In
the Village of Lancaster, costs are likewise a concern for 3rd Ward
Trustee William C. Schroeder, who once served as fire chief and has
tinkered with the village’s box alarm repairs himself over the
past 30 years.
“We
were probably spending $8,000 to $10,000 a year in maintenance on the
boxes,” he said, adding that false alarms sounded by the system
were numerous.
In
October 2006, Mother Nature added another unpredictable cost. After the
devastating storm, Lancaster’s trustees realized they faced an
unavoidable financial showdown with the village’s antique fire
alarm system.
Today,
most of the village’s boxes are bagged in somber black plastic,
awaiting their fate.
One
of the quaintest fire alarms in the center of town, however, remains
functional:
RAISE
COVER PULL LEVER reads the lettering on the iron pedestal-mounted box
in front of Lancaster Town Hall. On its side are cautionary words:
“A false alarm can cost a human life.”
In
the end, trustee Schroeder says, the fate of the boxes may come down to
a compromise in the Village of Lancaster.
Perhaps,
he said, alarm boxes will remain only in front of Town Hall and the
village’s fire houses. Perhaps an audible siren activated by
radio will continue to sound throughout the village whenever
there’s a fire call.
As
Cansdale said, it will be hard to say
goodbye.
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February 11, 2008
In-District
Structure Fire, 22 St. John Street: Garage Fire with Extension to
Apartment Building
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2007
News Archive
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2006
News Archive
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2003-2005 News Archive
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