The Reminder is making its archives back to 2003 available on our website. Please note that, due to technical limitations, archive articles are presented without the usual formatting.
Jonathon Naylor Editor The City of Flin Flon may start billing residents whose home security systems needlessly deploy firefighters to the scene. In recent months the Flin Flon Fire Dept. has responded to several false alarms originating with electronic security systems installed in many homes this year. 'We're getting too many false alarms and it's costing the city,' said Coun. Ken Pawlachuk, adding that each false alarm costs taxpayers about $1,000. 'People are going to have to be educated on using these alarms.' Coun. Pawlachuk said there have been six to eight such false alarms per month, with some occurring even when the occupants are home. 'A lot of times the people are in their house and there will be a false alarm and they don't even know the alarm goes off,' he said, 'because it phones Vancouver and Vancouver phones Brandon _ 911. 911 notifies our police and our fire department to respond.' In other instances the residents are not home, in which case Coun. Pawlachuk said Fire Chief Jim Petrie must enter the home to confirm that it's a fire alarm. 'These alarms also have flood alarms on them, they have a lot of things that our firefighters normally don't respond to,' said Coun. Pawlachuk, speaking at last week's city council meeting. 'When your basement's flooding, we don't send the fire department there. (Petrie) still has to go in the house and verify what tripped the alarm.' 'May' be charged But Coun. Pawlachuk stopped short of declaring that such calls will be billed to the homeowner from now on, saying only that this 'may' happen. He said if an honest mistake results in a false alarm then the city will 'deal with it as an honest mistake, but a lot of times there's no fire in the house.' Since the home security systems were installed, Coun. Pawlachuk said, firefighters have 'never had this many false alarms.' With a slogan of 'Life... Without worry!', Reliance Protectron Security Services this year made a push to sell security systems to area residents. Over the past few months many Reliance signs have popped up in Flin Flon yards as a warning to would-be intruders. While some may question the necessity of the systems, reported break-and-enters in Flin Flon rose from 46 incidents in 2010 to 75 last year.
