Smoke on the Water (hopefully not)

-by John Kenny, who served 33 years with the Toronto Fire Department. He is now on Ebbs Bay where his family has lived since the 1850’s.

Most of us on Mississippi Lake live 10 minutes or more from the closest fire station. In some places, like mine, it’s over 20 minutes. And the dedicated volunteers who make up our local fire departments need time to drop what they’re doing and respond. The actual response time needed to start effectively fighting a fire can be 20 or 30 minutes. Or more.

Rural firefighting is always a challenge. In most cities, the goal is to have the first fire crew on scene in under 5 minutes. More than that usually means the building is lost. Fires spread incredibly quickly when all the heat is contained inside a building. The growth is exponential. 

However, trying to implement urban firefighting standards in a rural setting just isn’t realistic. It's the old argument that putting a cop on every corner would eliminate crime, but it’s not practical.

Houses can be replaced - people can't. So what does that mean for us? It begins with good home fire safety. Turn the stove off and extinguish candles if you leave the room – even for a moment, because let’s face it, we all forget things. Teach children never to play with matches or lighters. Observe fire bans when they’re in force. And if you have a campfire, make sure you have a hose or a large bucket of water nearby.

The best thing you can do is have working smoke and CO detectors It's not just the law; it’s the cheapest life insurance you'll ever buy. In all my years as a firefighter I never had a fatality where there were working smoke and CO detectors.

Test your detectors monthly and change the batteries yearly if they’re not hard wired. It’s also a good idea to go over them lightly with the upholstery brush on your vacuum every few months, to get rid of dust or cobwebs inside. And replace them as required. Smoke detectors wear out after about 10 years and CO detectors after 7 years.

It’s a great idea to make a home fire escape plan and talk about it as a family. Think about ways to get out of every room in your house if the normal route is blocked by fire or smoke.

The Ontario government has a useful page on home fire safety - https://www.ontario.ca/page/fire-safety-home. Your local fire department is a great resource too. They’d be happy to answer any questions you have.