Fire recalls - Children safety

I wanted to take a moment to highlight an invaluable resource for your children’s safety. Our blog has a direct link in the right navigation panel to the United States Fire Administrations site for kid’s products that are recalled due to fire hazards or concerns.

The list of recalls is comprehensive and includes:

• Appliances
• Electronics/Electrical Power Devices
• Furniture
• Household Products
• Indoor Environment Products
• Infant/Child Products
• Clothing (not toys)
• Lighting/Lighter Products
• Toys

We would recommend that you visit this site periodically to check up on any recent recalls that may affect your family’s safety.

CFD Activity 10/21 - 10/27

Our members responded to 6 calls during this period and had a drill on Monday 10/26. Lt. Jim Querry was the Officer In Charge of the drill and the topic was ground ladders and tower ladder operations. Training on the basics is necessary to keep our skills sharp.

Lt. Querry and Deputy Chief Higgins instruct Junior Firefighters Stephens and Platt as well as Firefighter Jim Fania.

Ex-Chief Langston instructs CFD members on proper operation of the tower ladder.

Following is a summary of our recent calls:

10/23/09 @ 2:13 pm - Fire Box 4601 Level 1 - Motor Vehicle Accident with entrapment Interstate 78 west in Clinton Township. Engine 451 responded to assist the Annandale Hose Company. Engine 451 arrived on scene at 2:23 pm and deployed a hose line to protect Clinton Rescue Squad members while they extricated and cared for the victim. Engine 451 was ready for service at 3:33 pm.

10/23/09 @ 4:54 pm - Fire Box 4504 Level 4 - Carbon Monoxide Alarm, Hillside Drive in the Town of Clinton. The residents were out of the house and not feeling ill so all CFD units responded non-emergent and Chief 45 arrived on scene at 5:02 pm followed shortly by Engine 451. Members checked the residence using 3 meters and found no carbon monoxide. The cause of the alarm was found to be a faulty detector. All units were ready for service at 5:15 pm.

10/24/09 @ 1:41 am - Fire Box 9103 Level 2 - Chimney Fire Quakertown Road in Franklin Township. Tower 45 and Engine 451 respond mutual aid with Quakertown Fire Company(91) on this box. QFC was on scene and operating when Chief 45, the Tower and Engine arrived to assist. Quick work by QFC held the fire to the chimney and caused no damage to the structure. After assisting QFC operations all CFD units were released and ready for service by 2:50 am.

10/27/09 @ 9:01 am - Fire Box 2591 Level 2 - Structure Fire, County Route 579 in Union Township. Tower 45 responded mutual aid with Quakertown Fire Company(91) in this assignment. QFC arrived quickly and found fire in the attic of a detached garage and advance a hose line to extinguish the fire. Tower 45 arrived and vented the roof and assisted in overhaul operations. Damage to the structure was minimized by quick action by all units responding. High Bridge Ladder 14 also assisted on this assignment.

10/27/09 @ 2:31 pm - Fire Box 4621 Level 1 - Fire Alarm at North Hunterdon High School. Engine 451 responded mutual aid with Annandale Hose Company on this assignment. AHCO and CFD members found water leaking into a smoke detector to be the cause of the alarm. All units were ready for service at 3:01 pm.

10/27/09 @ 9:13 pm - Fire Box 4503 Level 1 - Odor of smoke, Cedar Court in the Town of Clinton. Chief 45 arrived at 9:17 and was followed by Engine 452 and Tower 45. Members investigated a burning odor in a townhouse unit and found an electrical fire in a light fixture. Members removed the light and ensured there was no fire extension to the structure. All units were ready for service at 9:54 pm.

Halloween Open House (5 pm - 9 pm)

This Saturday is our Halloween open house and we would love to see you there. This annual community event has grown from strength to strength each year and many kids look forward to it months in advance. Along with all the fun and festivities we will be collecting canned and other non-perishable goods the Food bank of New Jersey. Please bring your food products and support this wonderful community effort.

The open house starts at 5 pm and ends around 9 pm. The event gives your family the opportunity to tour the apparatus and ask any questions that they may have about the volunteer fire service. We added a LARGE inflatable jumping castle to the list of attractions last year and it was a definite hit with both the firefighters and the kids. Along with the candy, juice and chips that were provided by ShopRite of Clinton, we’ll also have fire prevention information available. 

We look forward to seeing you at the fire house!

Fireplace safety

Now is a great time to get ready for winter. One of the primary fire concerns during the cold winter months is chimney fires. We would recommend that you get a professional to come and inspect your fireplace and chimney to ensure that they are in good working condition. The video below will give you a good idea of what your professional should be checking for.

CFD Activity 10/16 - 10/20

On Friday, October 16 the YMCA Preschool visited the fire station. CFD Secretary Matt Brown did a fire prevention presentation, assisted by Chief Scott Wintermute and Firefighter Darrell Dulak. On Monday, October 21 our members drilled at Edna Mahon Prison. Also keep in mind our Annual Fund Drive has been mailed out and any help is greatly appreciated. The following are the incident responses for this period.

10-17-09 @ 12:02 pm - Fire Box 1402 Level 1 - Fire alarm at High Bridge Elementary School. Tower 45 is assigned to this box to assist the High Bridge Fire Department(14). Chief 14 arrived at 12:03 pm and quickly determined the alarm was in error and CFD was cancelled at 12:06 pm.

10-19-09 @ 10:39 pm - Fire Box 2548 Level 1 - Fire alarm at Hunterdon Developmental Center, Cottage 11 - Quakertown(E-912) and Pattenburg(E-251) are also assigned to this box. Tower 45 and Engine 912 arrived at 10:45 followed by Engine 451 at 10:47. Members quickly investigated the alarm and found the cause to be burnt food in a microwave. Engine 251 was cancelled without responding. All units were back in service at 11:01 pm.

10-20-09 @ 10:03 am - Fire Box 4621 Level 1 - Fire Alarm at Ingersoll Rand Route 31 South in Clinton Township. Engine 451 is assigned to this box to assist the Annandale Hose Company(46). Engine 451 responded at 10:06 but were quickly cancelled by Chief 46 when he was informed the alarm was actually a fire drill and the dispatcher alerted the fire box in error. CFD was ready for service at 10:08 pm.

10-20-09 @ 3:47 pm - Fire Box 4503 Level 1 - Motor vehicle accident with entrapment Leigh Street and School Street in the Town of Clinton. Chief 45 arrived at 3:48 pm and found a car struck a house and a Clinton Rescue Squad EMT on scene was requesting a helicopter to med-i-vac the driver. Engine 451 arrived at 3:53 pm and quickly stretched a hose line to protect the Rescue Squad during extrication. Other CFD members assisted EMS and Rescue as needed. Annandale Hose Company(46) was requested for an Engine to set up the landing zone at Clinton Public School. Clinton Rescue Squad extricated the patient and paramedics determined the helicopter was not needed and Engine 461 was cancelled as they arrived at the school. All CFD units were back in service at 4:38 pm.

Haunted Mill - Actors needed

If you like scaring the living daylights out of people this will be right up your alley.  The Haunted Mill, located in Clinton, NJ, is seeking volunteer actors age 18 and up. It is a great deal of fun with a wonderfully creative bunch of people.

The event runs on this Friday and Saturday the 23/24 and again on the 30th again.  There are 3 separate areas in all with 55 actors minimum needed each night. There is a need for help this on these dates but especially on this weekend.

If you think that you might like to try this even for just a couple of hours please contact Donna Stumm via email at donnastumm@earthlink.net. She will be able to get you to the correct person or give you the info herself.

CFD Activities 10/7 - 10/15

During this time our department responded to 5 more calls, visited schools for fire prevention week and worked very hard helping to construct the Haunted Mill. The Haunted Mill begins Friday October 16, so come on down and give it a shot....if you're not scared that is. CFD gets a portion of the proceeds for doing our share of the work. This is a good fundraiser for us as well as the historical museum. Also as the previous post said our annual fund drive has started, we appreciate every one's support in the past and going forward.

Following is a summary of our recent calls:

10-8-09 @ 8:21 pm - Fire Box 4621 Level 1 - North Hunterdon High School for a landing zone. This fire box is set up by Annandale Hose Company for fire calls at the school and Engine 451 is assigned. Annandale had sufficient manpower to handle this incident and CFD was cancelled at 8:22 pm.

10-9-09 @ 1:30 pm - Fire Box 2548 Level 1 - Hunterdon Developmental Center Cottage 17 for a fire alarm activation. Engine 451, Engine 912(Quakertown), and Squad 25(Pattenburg) responded to this incident. Investigation determined the alarm to be false, a bad detector was found. The detector was cleaned and replaced and the alarm was reset. All units returned to service at 2:02 pm.

10-9-09 @ 4:09 pm - Fire Box 4501 Level 1 - Town Restaurant, Main Street Clinton for a fire alarm. Engine 452 responded and arrived at 4:16 pm. Investigation determined the alarm was caused by cooking and there was no problem. All units returned to service at 4:21 pm.

10-11-09 @ 6:06 pm - Fire Box 9106 Level 1 - Hampton Inn for a fire alarm. Clinton Engine 451 and Tower 45 respond mutual aid to Quakertown Fire Company(91) on this box. Chief 45 and Chief 91 arrived on scene at 6:10 pm. Chief 45 assumed command and Chief 91 was Operations Chief. Tower 45 arrived and was sent to the 4th floor to investigate the cause of the alarm. Engine 912, Engine 451, and Rescue 91 also responded and stood by on scene. 91 Police arrived on scene for a disorderly person complaint at the same time the FD's were investigating the alarm. Investigation determined the alarm was pulled by the disorderly person who was having a medical issue and was transported by Clinton EMS. The alarm was reset and all units returned to service at 6:36 pm.

10-14-09 @ 8:18 am - Fire Box 4503 Level 1 - Fire Alarm on Haverfarm Road in the Town of Clinton. Hunterdon County Communication advised Chief 45 the alarm company received proper code after dispatch and was requesting cancellation. Chief 45 held all apparatus in station and proceeded non-emergent to ensure all was OK at the residence. Chief 45 arrived at 8:23 am and spoke to the resident who had set the alarm of in error. The scene was clear at 8:26 am.