Winter Fire Safety Preparedness

Hydrant sorely in need of help here....vines too! Houses across the street.

A Cicero NY firefighter responded to our notice rescuing this fire hydrant!

Winter is no time to hibernate when it comes to preparedness and fire safety especially...while you are out shovelling, snow blowing or plowing, please take a few minutes to remove obstructions (SNOW) around your nearby fire hydrant.  If you live in a fire district with volunteers remember it may take extra time for them to respond to your fire....those 10 minutes will seem like an eternity.  Why have them waste even more time shovelling to your hydrant?

Update 12-12-10:  We've added a zipped file of posters on the main page of the website and Adopt A Hydrant Certificate files so your FD can create their own posters and let people "adopt" a hydrant for the purposes of ensuring it is clear of any obstruction (snow) in the event of a fire.....    check them out....   http://www.ice4safety.com/

More:  http://dl.dropbox.com/u/8559210/FIND%20THE%20HYDRANT.pdf

Confirm this by watching news on 12-9-10 from ABC WIXT here: http://tinyurl.com/2f2sgcx

Having an obstructed hydrant could result in a delay in knocking down your fire and the sacrifice of 1-2 firefighters that might be better used fighting the fire or doing a rescue...now think about that.  Don't wait. 

Get the latest Winter Fire Safety Kit for your organization right here:  12-27-10

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/8559210/Winter%20Fire%20Safety%20Program%2012-27-10.zip

We try to support those who will be responding to our calls for help and have done so for years.  This idea is certainly timely and important - especially in this retched economy where the cost of services keep going up and the level of service keeps going down.

City of Southfield Michigan Can Do It

Fairfax Virginia can do it too!

Okay here is a hydrant in DEWITT, NEW YORK shoveled out recently(okay, we used a snow blower!) so even a Fat Santa can get around this one ....or a heavily outfitted firefighter.  10 feet of clearance all around so the snow plow won't block it in.  Don't scrimp here. Teach the kids how to do it.  


Suggestions:  Town/Village/City could place a family (or families) name on the hydrant that is charged with clearing it out (See Pics) using easily applied label tape or they can implant a locater stake with a flag with the names on it.....and keep a spreadsheet database of names.....contests or business sponsorship (they can clean out theirs as well) are all possibilities.   We have included an "Adoption Certificate" in our Fire Safety Zipped File so Fire Chiefs or sponsors can issue them to willing participants.....which should be everyone.  This goes for dry standpipes in rural communities as well. 


  

Snowstorm predicted for this week.....get your shovel on!

Adopt This Hydrant.

Fire Chiefs or Town/City Officials Can Issue "Adoption Papers"

NEW!.....Notify your local Fire Department yourself that you are Helping Out! 

Steve Cannerelli Photo Syracuse Post Standard 1-19-11   ISO Rated #1 Fire Department

WIXT News and B104.7 Radio Have Joined the Chorus  2-9-11

http://www.b1047.net/cc-common/news/sections/newsarticle.html?feed=125739&article=8150446

Is this as easy as it seems?  Yes it is.... 

Before

After

Some People Requested a Visual Representation.  There you go.

ICE4SAFETY has expanded to Wordpress now as well.....

http://ice4safety.wordpress.com/2011/02/09/adopting-a-fire-hydrant-yours/

Winter Fire Safety Posters - Adopt a Hydrant

After we had assembled a group of winter fire safety posters we came upon the idea of adopting a hydrant as a theme....seems it was not an original idea - but one we liked nonetheless!

We found two Adopt A Hydrant programs online - Fairfax, Virginia and Southfield, Michigan and we salute your cities for doing this.

ICE4SAFETY would like everyone with snow to venture out to their nearest Fire Hydrant and Shovel or Snowblow the little fellas out. It may be double digits below zero with wind chill when you shovel, but imagine the firefighter who may have just been roused from his warm home to fight your fire in that temperature come 0300Hrs.

You can find the new posters on the ICE website http://www.ice4safety.com/diy.html in a zipped file. Want to design some for others to use? Have some neat pics we can use? Use your email and send them along. Full credit given.

Slide show is temporarily down - please visit the ICE4SAFETY website to download the fire safety posters.

NEXT TIME YOUR FIRE DEPARTMENT HAS A PANCAKE BREAKFAST OR SOME OTHER PUBLIC FUNCTION, YOU MIGHT CONSIDER POPPING A FEW OF THESE POSTERS ON TABLES FOR PEOPLE TO SEE - THEY WILL GET THE HINT. LOCAL BOY SCOUTS CAN PASS THESE OUT DOOR TO DOOR IN AREAS THE FIRE DEPARTMENT MIGHT NEED A HELPING HAND COME WINTER! THIS IS REAL EASY FOLKS.