Harvard Fire Chief Bob Mignard offers home safety tips in this new column.
Spring is here! Well, almost. But with the improving weather comes a hazard: thin ice! As the weather slowly warms, the ice melts and refreezes in an almost endless cycle until it eventually goes away until next year. The effect of these multiple freeze/thaw cycles is that the ice becomes very weak and unstable. At this time of year ice four inches thick will not support a small animal, much less a person, because it is so fragile.
The Harvard Fire Department strongly recommends that everyone stay off the ice. If your dog likes to roam and wander, now is a great time to take your beloved pooch for a walk on a leash. Don’t take the risk of your pet going through the ice. If you see a dog that has fallen through thin ice, don’t go after him. The water is still very cold and hypothermia will occur in minutes; you are likely to become a victim yourself. Call the Fire Department immediately and we will do what we can to retrieve the animal.
State Fire Marshal Stephen D. Coan and I want to alert the public about changes that take place April 5 in the state’s smoke alarm regulations for homes with five or fewer units.
The regulation will require that only photoelectric smoke detectors be installed within 20 feet of a kitchen or bath containing a shower, in order to reduce nuisance alarms from cooking smoke or steam that lead people to disable their smoke alarms. Areas located beyond this 20-foot area will be required to contain dual detection, both photoelectric and ionization, using either a single detector or two separate ones.
Use of technology to provide earliest warning of fire
Smoke alarms use two main technologies: photoelectric and ionization. Photoelectric smoke alarms are more effective in detecting slow-moving or smoldering fire situations, whereas ionization detectors are slightly more effective in detecting fast moving fires. Coan says that this change, requiring the use of dual detection technology, provides the best level of public safety by reducing nuisance alarms that lead people to disable their smoke alarms and by providing the earliest possible warning of a fire and therefore time to escape to safety.
Enforcement on sale or transfer
The enforcement of the regulation will continue to take place when a residence is sold or ownership is transferred. Homeowners selling their homes after April 5, 2010 will have to meet these new requirements.
Working smoke alarms double chances of surviving a fire
Coan says, “We must continue to update our fire prevention code to keep pace with evolving technology, knowledge of human behavior, and scientific research. I want to stress that working smoke alarms greatly increase your chances of surviving a fire.”
Carbon monoxide alarms
Since March 2006 all homes have been required to install carbon monoxide alarms on each habitable level, in addition to smoke detectors.
Where to find more information
For more information about smoke detectors and carbon monoxide alarms, contact the Harvard Fire Department at 978-456-3648 or Chief Mignard at 978-302-8077, or visit the Department of Fire Service’s website at www.mass.gov/dfs; click on “Division of Fire Safety.” To help guide homeowners and realtors in understanding the requirements, a new brochure has been published and is also available on the Department of Fire Services website: “A Guide to the Massachusetts Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Requirements When Selling a One- or Two-Family Residence.”