Training Update!

As many of our page visitors are aware, we handle a wide array of emergency situations.  In a single day we could respond to a fire, water incident, auto crash, or medical emergency.  As part of our required training all members of our staff recently completed a Pre-Hospital Trauma Life Support (PHTLS) course.
While a refresher for most employees, PHTLS is a course that reviews and trains over traumatic injuries of all types from falls to automobile accidents.  With this training our staff will be be better prepared, should an incident occur.
Other recent training our staff has completed includes hazardous materials training which reviewed how to identify hazardous materials incidents.  Both PHTLS and the hazardous materials trainings were part of nationally recognized curriculum, but there is much more that training and education that goes on every day.  With the State of Michigan requiring over 240 hours of training for firefighters annually, our entire staff stays on top of new techniques and maintains a vast knowledge base.
As always, if you ever have any questions please feel free to give us a call or stop by and we will be more than happy to share our knowledge with you.

Working Smoke Alarms Save Lives!

Hello Everyone, as you may be aware from radio, print, or other media this week is Fire Prevention Week.  This week we are taking a very particular focus on smoke detectors as this year's theme is Working Smoke Alarms Save Lives!

Think you know about smoke alarms you?
Well, did you know smoke alarms should be checked once a month by pressing the button on the front to make sure they alarm properly?  If you didn't now you do!  In addition to monthly testing, batteries in your alarms should be changed every 6 months, not when they start chirping.  Even hard-wired whole home systems have battery packs that need to be changed.  And finally, as with anything else, smoke alarms get old and wear down.  For this reason, the National Fire Prevention Agency (NFPA) and most major manufacturers recommend replacing your smoke alarms every 10 years.  If you aren't sure how old they are, manufacturers put a sticker on the back with the manufactured date.

Here are some other helpful links!
fpw.org -  Home of NFPA's Fire Prevention Page
http://www.sparky.org/parentpage/fpwkids.htm - A special kid's edition webpage for fire safety and prevention
ready.gov - A Federal Emergency Management Agency website geared toward all types of preparedness and prevention, not just fire.
glenlakefire.org - Our very own website contains several links, as well as important information for you to use as a resource.

October 5th kicks off Fire Prevention Week!

With National Fire Prevention Week just around the corner, over the course of October, our posts will be geared toward fire prevention.  While Fire Prevention Week is a special one week push, we will be posting tips throughout the month.

Why is Fire Prevention Week in October? 

Fire Prevention Week was established to commemorate the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 that occurred on October 8th and 9th.  The fire killed more than 250 people, left 100,000 homeless and destroyed more than 17,400 structures.  Each year since 1922, the week that October 9th falls in is recognized as Fire Prevention Week.  This year's theme is "Working Smoke Detectors Save Lives".  Check back soon for tips and preparedness tips!