Seminar and Demonstration Fall 2009

At the Fall Meeting Fire Chief Tom Mattice presented a seminar and demonstration of fire safety equipment. It was very thorough, and many homeowners attended. Below is the outline of the complete initiative.

What you can do on your own

  • Check with your insurance company to make sure your fire coverage reflects your home’s value, especially in light of the recent revaluation of properties conducted by Town of Long Lake, which might have some bearing.

  • Make an escape plan for your family in the event of fire. Assign duties. Have a meeting point external to the house. Put the 911 Emergency sticker on the phone along side of the house fire number and relative location of the house i.e. off Antlers Rd. near the Antlers Beach/old golf course/Girls Camp. Distant 911 dispatchers are trained to pass along every tidbit of information to the local fire department.

  • Evaluate the needs of your home in light of Local Law #1 of 2008, Providing for Numbering of Buildings and Important Locations, passed and adopted on November 12, 2008, effective within six months of adoption (May 12, 2009). This local law, enforced by the Town of Long Lake Code Enforcement Officer Harry Buxton, provides as follows:
    • All buildings must be numbered as assigned by the Town Supervisor Gregg Wallace 
    • Building number must appear on the building itself or at the driveway entrance to the building.
    • It is the owner’s responsibility to place the numbers on the front/roadside entrance, in reflected numbers, 3-4 inches in size, block Arabic numerals on a contrasting background, high enough not to be obscured by snow in winter, visible from the road, unobstructed by anything, with a number on a post at the end of a driveway if the building is not visible from the road or more than 75 ft from edge of road.
    • Buildings accessible by water are advised to also display a sign on the permanent dock or a fixed location on land within 10 ft of the mean high water mark.

  • Raquette Lake Fire Chief Tom Mattice recommends:
    • Sharing the the posting pole for numbers (in numerical order) of buildings sharing a drive/road, putting the post near Antlers Road.
    • Making sure that the access road to your home is plowed in winter so the fire department can get its vehicles as close as possible to the building. Hauling a heavy hose over deep snow a long distance is not easy for an aging responder population and a cleared road makes it that much easier for them.

Morin Sign Shop, 121 Forge St., Thendara,  is one local provider of acceptable signage.

What we can help you do:

  • RL Fire Chief Tom Mattice recommends at least two fire extinguishers for every household; one placed in the kitchen and another in an area of the house near an exit. The purpose of the fire extinguisher is to ‘buy’ about 6 minutes of fire reduction time while the Fire Department strives to get to your home, best time 15 minutes from receipt of the 911 alert call, IF someone is home to report the fire!

  • Fire extinguishers can be ordered for delivery in RL thru RLOA.
    • First Alert Brand Fire Extinguishers, 10/12 yr. warrantee, discounted by Inlet Ace Hardware in a special price to us:
      • 2.5 lb dry chemical ABC all-purpose (ordinary combustibles, flammable liquids & gases, electrical equipment),4lb.total weight, about the size of a huge soda bottle -
      • 5 lb. dry chemical ABC all-purpose (ordinary combustibles, flammable liquids & gases, electrical equipment) 10-12lb.
      • 10 LB. ALSO AVAILABLE FOR  LONGER FIRE SUPPRESSION
  • Smoke detectors and combination smoke detectors/carbon monoxide detectors can be ordered thru RLOA. RL Fire Chief Tom Mattice indicates NYS Fire Code mandates (in new constructions) there should be a smoke detector in every bedroom and at 6 ft. intervals in hallways. Given the prevalence of propane gas use in our homes for cooking and heating he recommends all houses also have carbon monoxide detectors.

 

RLOA thanks those who helped

The Raquette Lake Owners Association (RLOA) of Antlers Point thanks those who made the Fire Safety Program featured at our September 2009 meeting so successful:

Becky Cleaveland, Manager of the Inlet Ace Hardware for her friendly and efficient assistance in acquiring the fire extinguishers and detectors sold at the meeting a reduced price to the members.

Nancy Grosselfinger, RLOA, for her enthusiastic development of the fire safety initiative.

Tom Mattice, Chief of the Raquette Lake Fire Dept for his excellent presentation and fire extinguisher demonstration.

Sara Morin of Morin Sign Shop for working cheerfully and patiently with us.

Rhonda Jacobs, SUNY Cortland / Antlers for the use of the meeting room.

Dean Pohl for permission to use the private beach for the fire extinguishing demonstration.

Anyone or organization who wishes more information on the Fire Safety Program may call: Ron Kilbourn, President, RLOA