Residents Congregating during Alarm Activations

[Ben Trendle]

Hey Everyone,

Hope you’re all doing well during the pandemic. A Suppression Captain brought a COVID-19 issue to my attention that I didn’t think about as of yet and we’re unsure the best route to go but thought I’d raise the concern here.

We responded to a residential building for a fire alarm activation. All the residents were evacuating upon our arrival and began congregating and not practicing physical distancing while they were waiting for the all clear to return. For now we are advising crews to remind residents they encounter to maintain distance with each other but are going to work on more formal correspondence to address the issue.

 

[John Wilson]

From my perspective, as long as the residents maintain their distance from your crews, the rest isn’t your cup of tea to educate/enforce. While we all want the best for everyone, we’ve got a tough enough job without voluntarily accepting responsibility that isn’t ours. Leave that up to the police/bylaw per your municipality.

[Kevin Meijerink]

I agree with Jon.  This isn’t ours to deal with.  Have your crews do their regular job and observe physical distance as necessary for their safety and call it a day.

[Author]

Posts