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Winter of 08' ,,, its gonna get busy!
Okay, its Memorial Day weekend and this guys talking about winter! WTF! Its short and tee shirt weather buddy!!!
Yea, I know Im happy about summer as much as the next person. I will say though, I have a grave concern about what the fire service will face once the leaves fall and we hunker down for the winter months. Perhaps NOW is the time to consider what I see as inevitable.
I dont need to tell anybody about what it costs to buy petroleum products. Forget gas,,,Im talking about home heating oil. Where I am, about 75 miles North on NYC, home heating oil is on average $ 4.39 a gallon and Im sure that come November, myself as well as many others will probably be wishing it was only that.
Mother nature doesnt care about energy costs,,,its gonna get cold. See where this is going???
I will go out on a limb and say that the fire service will see a drastic increase in fire calls as the cold season approaches that it will continue throughout the winter months. Add to that a few flooding conditions from broken pipes and for certain an increase in EMS calls regarding the elderly.
People who cannot afford to purchase fuel oil will obviously seek various alternatives for heat. Some of these ideas will be well thought out, built to specific codes,inspected and function flawlessly.
Unfortunately, probably most will not. Dangerous modifications to current heating systems, overloaded electrical systems, extension cords, poor installations of new systems by homeownes or the all so popular "Hey, Cleatus,,,check out what I just built" will surely keep us on our toes this winter season.
Where do we fall into all this???
PLANNING and EDUCATION!
Talk about this stuff NOW! Get a plan together in you Fire District. Get together with elected officials on ways to reach out to your communities. Consider trying to target adults as much as children in your Fire Prevention program. Perhaps an ad about home heating safety in your local newspaper as the season nears could contribute to saving a life.
Bottom line, give it some thought. Its not as far away as we would like to think!
I wish you all a great Holiday weekend and a wonderful summer!
Enjoy and As Always,,,STAY SAFE!
Mike
Yea, I know Im happy about summer as much as the next person. I will say though, I have a grave concern about what the fire service will face once the leaves fall and we hunker down for the winter months. Perhaps NOW is the time to consider what I see as inevitable.
I dont need to tell anybody about what it costs to buy petroleum products. Forget gas,,,Im talking about home heating oil. Where I am, about 75 miles North on NYC, home heating oil is on average $ 4.39 a gallon and Im sure that come November, myself as well as many others will probably be wishing it was only that.
Mother nature doesnt care about energy costs,,,its gonna get cold. See where this is going???
I will go out on a limb and say that the fire service will see a drastic increase in fire calls as the cold season approaches that it will continue throughout the winter months. Add to that a few flooding conditions from broken pipes and for certain an increase in EMS calls regarding the elderly.
People who cannot afford to purchase fuel oil will obviously seek various alternatives for heat. Some of these ideas will be well thought out, built to specific codes,inspected and function flawlessly.
Unfortunately, probably most will not. Dangerous modifications to current heating systems, overloaded electrical systems, extension cords, poor installations of new systems by homeownes or the all so popular "Hey, Cleatus,,,check out what I just built" will surely keep us on our toes this winter season.
Where do we fall into all this???
PLANNING and EDUCATION!
Talk about this stuff NOW! Get a plan together in you Fire District. Get together with elected officials on ways to reach out to your communities. Consider trying to target adults as much as children in your Fire Prevention program. Perhaps an ad about home heating safety in your local newspaper as the season nears could contribute to saving a life.
Bottom line, give it some thought. Its not as far away as we would like to think!
I wish you all a great Holiday weekend and a wonderful summer!
Enjoy and As Always,,,STAY SAFE!
Mike
Add a Comment
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Comment by Peter Lupkowski on June 29, 2008 at 12:27am
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Thanks Mike, we are working with the local aging office to exchange info on the elderly. A simple inspection if they see something and we can go in and help. We also will call them if we head into a cold place for an EMS call in the winter.
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Comment by Brian on May 25, 2008 at 8:37pm
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those of us in the colder climates will surely see an increase in chimney fires this year i,m sure...lets hope thats the least of our problems
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Comment by Kelly on May 25, 2008 at 1:49pm
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i guess planning head while it good weather is the best thing anyone could do with the gas being what it is and all
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