Learn the Sounds of Fire Safety with new video

By Cecilia Nasmith

The new family-friendly video Sounds of Fire Safety is good viewing any time – but especially this week, as it's Fire Prevention Week 2021.

The video is a collaboration on the part of all seven fire services in Northumberland County, Port Hope Fire Prevention Officer Jacquie Hill-Bower said Tuesday.

“We hired a local Port Hope production company called Two Blue Shirts Productions, who basically worked with some of our members.”

Trent Hills Fire Department Building/Fire Inspector Brian Buchanan and Hamilton Township Fire Department Fire Prevention Officer Shelley Leger took the lead, Hill-Bower said. They worked with the Two Blue Shirts people and came up with a script based on the National Fire Protection Association's theme this year, “Learn the sounds of fire safety.”

They've created a very entertaining piece of footage, Hill-Bower said, casting Sparky The Fire Dog as a sort of superhero on a mission.

“It has kind of an old flavour, a Batman kind of feel to it. It's fun, and it's very much for all ages and great for the younger ones.”

Her son gave it a thumbs-up, she added.

“He got a real kick out of it. He loved the old-school vibe of it.”

With a running time of just under four minutes, it's an easy sell to the younger family members. You can find it on the Facebook page or Twitter account of any of the county's seven fire services – or go to https://youtu.be/bYzhAnjl9Xo

Fire Prevention Week is Oct. 3 to 9 this year.

This annual observance is always declared for the week which has Oct. 9 in it to commemorate the Great Chicago Fire in 1871 – an horrific conflagration that killed more than 250 people, left 100,000 homeless, destroyed more than 17,400 structures and burned more than 2,000 acres of land.

President Calvin Coolidge proclaimed Fire Prevention Week a national observance in 1925, making it the longest-running public health observance in the United States.

For this 96th annual observance, Hill-Bower said, “we want to emphasize that this is a focus on learning the sounds of fire safety. We want families and people to understand the different alarms they need to have in their homes and the different sounds they make – and focus on the maintenance of smoke and carbon-monoxide alarms.

“If you have regular alkaline-battery alarms, change the batteries regularly,” she said.

Manufacturers recommend changing batteries once a year. But fire services recommend twice as often, tying the change of batteries to that weekend when you change over your clock to or from Daylight Savings time, just to make it easy to remember.

“When you do your clocks, do your batteries,” she said.

Also, she warned, these alarms do not last forever. Most expire after 10 years.

“Sometimes that chirp is not a low battery. It's an end-of-life signal.”

That applies to both smoke alarms and carbon-monoxide alarms, she added.

“We always recommend checking manufacturers' instructions to see what the life span is for the alarm they have purchased.

“Knowing what to do when an alarm sounds will keep you and your family safe. When an alarm makes noises – a beeping sound or a chirping sound – you must take action.”