BERLIN– The town addressed a recent rogue fire siren during a Mayor and Council meeting on Monday, July 28.
The siren, located near Town Hall, malfunctioned and stayed on for nearly a half hour on the morning of July 4, frightening guests at nearby hotels and inns and causing a nuisance to town businesses.
Berlin Mayor Gee Williams read an email sent to Town Administrator Laura Allen by Berlin Fire Chief David T. Lewis dated July 17.
“The chiefs of the Berlin Fire Company met earlier today and decided we would like the fire siren to only blow during the hours of 07:00-22:00 hours every day,” the email stated.
Lewis, in the email, said the fire siren, “alerts citizens, members and visitors of the town, as well as Berlin Fire Company members.” Lewis acknowledged the increased tourism in Berlin. “It seems that the siren blowing at night is causing an unpleasant experience for the guests that may not be accustom [sic] to a fire siren and therefore not blowing it at night from 22:00-07:00 would solve this problem.”
The letter stated that the Fire Company still saw a need for the siren during the day, and that public service announcements educating the public about their purpose were in the works.
Williams then read a letter from Berlin Fire Company President David A. Fitzgerald dated July 28 stating the company membership passed a motion during their last meeting on July 14 to review the fire siren. The membership will make recommendations on the incident during their next scheduled meeting on Aug. 11.
“The fire company membership gave the Town permission to relocate the fire siren behind town hall to another taller pole along one of the side streets near the town office,” Fitzgerald said in the letter. “Since that decision, an electrical malfunction occurred and the siren activated for a period of time over the July 4 holiday which has caused the sirens to be a discussion of topic in the community.”
Fitzgerald said the company was addressing the incident and said the siren’s purpose was, “notifying volunteers of a call, notifying residents and visitors to be on the lookout for volunteer members responding to calls and emergency vehicles responding, and for emergency management/civil defense notifications.” The letter included an apology to the town and said Fitzgerald would correspond with Berlin following the Aug. 11 meeting.
Williams drafted a letter on behalf of the Council supporting the recommended changes and acknowledging the email and letter.
“We wish to reiterate the Berlin Mayor and Council’s full support for limiting the operation of the BFC sirens to between the hours of 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.” the letter stated.
Councilmember Elroy Brittingham made a motion to approve the letter, which passed Council unanimously.
The Council also approved a motion to defer EDUs for five years for a new Royal Farms store at the intersection of Route 50 and Route 452. The store will move into the already-zoned space where an Arby’s currently stands, and the Arby’s will move across the street.
A public hearing opened and closed without comment on Ordinance 2014-4 regarding the peddling, solicitation or distribution of merchandise, and the amendment passed Council unanimously.
During departmental reports, Berlin Police Chief Arnold Downing announced that Pfc. Jessica Collins received certification to administer a drug intended to reverse the effects of heroin overdoses.
“This year we actually had two heroin overdoses that we arrived at with the fire department, so we feel this is going to be a plus,” Downing said. “She’s going to be able to come back as an instructor, evaluate the situation and see if we can go ahead and train other officers in the department.”
The siren, located near Town Hall, malfunctioned and stayed on for nearly a half hour on the morning of July 4, frightening guests at nearby hotels and inns and causing a nuisance to town businesses.
Berlin Mayor Gee Williams read an email sent to Town Administrator Laura Allen by Berlin Fire Chief David T. Lewis dated July 17.
“The chiefs of the Berlin Fire Company met earlier today and decided we would like the fire siren to only blow during the hours of 07:00-22:00 hours every day,” the email stated.
Lewis, in the email, said the fire siren, “alerts citizens, members and visitors of the town, as well as Berlin Fire Company members.” Lewis acknowledged the increased tourism in Berlin. “It seems that the siren blowing at night is causing an unpleasant experience for the guests that may not be accustom [sic] to a fire siren and therefore not blowing it at night from 22:00-07:00 would solve this problem.”
The letter stated that the Fire Company still saw a need for the siren during the day, and that public service announcements educating the public about their purpose were in the works.
Williams then read a letter from Berlin Fire Company President David A. Fitzgerald dated July 28 stating the company membership passed a motion during their last meeting on July 14 to review the fire siren. The membership will make recommendations on the incident during their next scheduled meeting on Aug. 11.
“The fire company membership gave the Town permission to relocate the fire siren behind town hall to another taller pole along one of the side streets near the town office,” Fitzgerald said in the letter. “Since that decision, an electrical malfunction occurred and the siren activated for a period of time over the July 4 holiday which has caused the sirens to be a discussion of topic in the community.”
Fitzgerald said the company was addressing the incident and said the siren’s purpose was, “notifying volunteers of a call, notifying residents and visitors to be on the lookout for volunteer members responding to calls and emergency vehicles responding, and for emergency management/civil defense notifications.” The letter included an apology to the town and said Fitzgerald would correspond with Berlin following the Aug. 11 meeting.
Williams drafted a letter on behalf of the Council supporting the recommended changes and acknowledging the email and letter.
“We wish to reiterate the Berlin Mayor and Council’s full support for limiting the operation of the BFC sirens to between the hours of 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily.” the letter stated.
Councilmember Elroy Brittingham made a motion to approve the letter, which passed Council unanimously.
The Council also approved a motion to defer EDUs for five years for a new Royal Farms store at the intersection of Route 50 and Route 452. The store will move into the already-zoned space where an Arby’s currently stands, and the Arby’s will move across the street.
A public hearing opened and closed without comment on Ordinance 2014-4 regarding the peddling, solicitation or distribution of merchandise, and the amendment passed Council unanimously.
During departmental reports, Berlin Police Chief Arnold Downing announced that Pfc. Jessica Collins received certification to administer a drug intended to reverse the effects of heroin overdoses.
“This year we actually had two heroin overdoses that we arrived at with the fire department, so we feel this is going to be a plus,” Downing said. “She’s going to be able to come back as an instructor, evaluate the situation and see if we can go ahead and train other officers in the department.”