County Firefighters Work To Prevent Fire-Related Deaths
July 28, 2016 at 4:25 p.m.
Tax dollars cover the day-to-day operations of local fire departments, and firefighters throughout the county admit their jobs are reactive - when an alarm sounds, they respond.
However, the men who answer the calls - especially those who have worked the scene of a fatal fire - are working to be proactive in Kosciusko County and they need the help of the community to make it happen.
The Kosciusko County Firemen's Association, which comprises about 250 firefighters, is a month into a countywide program to put a working smoke detector in every home. It is estimated at least 15,000 smoke detectors will be needed and the cost is about $10 each.
Already, fire departments throughout the county have been distributing the battery-operated smoke detectors and North Webster Fire Department Chief Harold Gunkel said his first allotment of 120 has been depleted for two weeks. Eight hundred more smoke detectors were divided among the county fire departments Wednesday night to be handed out to residents.
Warsaw Fire Marshal Michael Wilson said several area fire departments have offered free smoke detectors in the past, but this is the first countywide effort being undertaken in the state.
The idea was proposed after a 3-year-old girl died in Silver Lake in one of five fire fatalities in the county this year. More than two-thirds of the 25 firemen at a media event Wednesday raised a hand in response to how many have worked the scene of a fatal fire.
"The stress level is unreal," Wilson said. "It's hard for them to talk about it."
Of the 12 fires that Squad 70, the county's fire investigation team, has worked on, only two had smoke detectors placed in the home, and those weren't operable, according to Shane Bucher, president of the organization. The likelihood of getting out of a burning home is 50 percent greater if there is a working smoke alarm in the residence, he said.
"If we can save one life out of this campaign, it will be worth it," Bucher said.
Firefighters recommend that batteries be changed annually on smoke detectors and that the whole unit be replaced every five to 10 years, depending on the model. Kreg Warren of the WFD said it's a good idea to plan battery changes and testing around a birthday or holiday every year to set the time as a reminder.
The number of smoke detectors needed in a home depends upon the size of the home and the preference of the homeowner. It is recommended that there be one unit at least in every sleeping area in the home. Directions on the boxes of the units also offer guidelines.
In homes where smoke detectors are already installed, firefighters are offering new batteries if they are needed. Gunkel said that when a smoke detector is making a "chirping" sound, "that doesn't mean your smoke detector is working, it means the battery needs replaced."
In 75 percent of the fires investigated in the county, there was a malfunctioning or missing smoke detector. It is estimated that about 40 percent of homes in the Warsaw area don't have working smoke detectors. The national standard is at 50 percent, Wilson said.
Officials said that no one smoke detector is better than another on the market today as long as it is a working unit.
Syracuse Fire Department Chief Larry Hunter said he pushes for children "to tell mom and dad to come in and get a smoke detector" during tours of their facility. "Kids understand," Hunter said. "They're our biggest helpers."
Firefighters in several communities are going door-to-door offering smoke detectors. If a resident needs assistance in the installation, the firefighters take care of that for them. Other fire departments are passing the units out at their firehouses. Anyone who hasn't been approached by a firefighter in their town or who is unable to stop by can call their local fire department and a smoke detector will be delivered to their home.
"This program allows us to put fire safety in the home," said Mitch Rader, a member of the Leesburg Fire Department and president of the KCFA. "We tell people we want them to join our team." He said if people can spare a few dollars, "the life that is saved may be a family member, friend or employee."
Donations to the smoke detector program can be made to: Kosciusko County Foundation, Smoke Detector Program, 102 E. Market St., Warsaw, IN 46850.
Firefighters also are available to speak to groups and civic organizations about this project and about general fire safety issues.
For more information, contact your local fire department. [[In-content Ad]]
Tax dollars cover the day-to-day operations of local fire departments, and firefighters throughout the county admit their jobs are reactive - when an alarm sounds, they respond.
However, the men who answer the calls - especially those who have worked the scene of a fatal fire - are working to be proactive in Kosciusko County and they need the help of the community to make it happen.
The Kosciusko County Firemen's Association, which comprises about 250 firefighters, is a month into a countywide program to put a working smoke detector in every home. It is estimated at least 15,000 smoke detectors will be needed and the cost is about $10 each.
Already, fire departments throughout the county have been distributing the battery-operated smoke detectors and North Webster Fire Department Chief Harold Gunkel said his first allotment of 120 has been depleted for two weeks. Eight hundred more smoke detectors were divided among the county fire departments Wednesday night to be handed out to residents.
Warsaw Fire Marshal Michael Wilson said several area fire departments have offered free smoke detectors in the past, but this is the first countywide effort being undertaken in the state.
The idea was proposed after a 3-year-old girl died in Silver Lake in one of five fire fatalities in the county this year. More than two-thirds of the 25 firemen at a media event Wednesday raised a hand in response to how many have worked the scene of a fatal fire.
"The stress level is unreal," Wilson said. "It's hard for them to talk about it."
Of the 12 fires that Squad 70, the county's fire investigation team, has worked on, only two had smoke detectors placed in the home, and those weren't operable, according to Shane Bucher, president of the organization. The likelihood of getting out of a burning home is 50 percent greater if there is a working smoke alarm in the residence, he said.
"If we can save one life out of this campaign, it will be worth it," Bucher said.
Firefighters recommend that batteries be changed annually on smoke detectors and that the whole unit be replaced every five to 10 years, depending on the model. Kreg Warren of the WFD said it's a good idea to plan battery changes and testing around a birthday or holiday every year to set the time as a reminder.
The number of smoke detectors needed in a home depends upon the size of the home and the preference of the homeowner. It is recommended that there be one unit at least in every sleeping area in the home. Directions on the boxes of the units also offer guidelines.
In homes where smoke detectors are already installed, firefighters are offering new batteries if they are needed. Gunkel said that when a smoke detector is making a "chirping" sound, "that doesn't mean your smoke detector is working, it means the battery needs replaced."
In 75 percent of the fires investigated in the county, there was a malfunctioning or missing smoke detector. It is estimated that about 40 percent of homes in the Warsaw area don't have working smoke detectors. The national standard is at 50 percent, Wilson said.
Officials said that no one smoke detector is better than another on the market today as long as it is a working unit.
Syracuse Fire Department Chief Larry Hunter said he pushes for children "to tell mom and dad to come in and get a smoke detector" during tours of their facility. "Kids understand," Hunter said. "They're our biggest helpers."
Firefighters in several communities are going door-to-door offering smoke detectors. If a resident needs assistance in the installation, the firefighters take care of that for them. Other fire departments are passing the units out at their firehouses. Anyone who hasn't been approached by a firefighter in their town or who is unable to stop by can call their local fire department and a smoke detector will be delivered to their home.
"This program allows us to put fire safety in the home," said Mitch Rader, a member of the Leesburg Fire Department and president of the KCFA. "We tell people we want them to join our team." He said if people can spare a few dollars, "the life that is saved may be a family member, friend or employee."
Donations to the smoke detector program can be made to: Kosciusko County Foundation, Smoke Detector Program, 102 E. Market St., Warsaw, IN 46850.
Firefighters also are available to speak to groups and civic organizations about this project and about general fire safety issues.
For more information, contact your local fire department. [[In-content Ad]]