Walpole Fire Department

Fire Prevention

Respectively Submitted By

Deputy Fire Chief Michael K. Laracy

The goal of the Fire Prevention Division is to support the Department’s Mission Statement:

“The mission of the Walpole Fire Department is to protect life and property from the threat of fires, medical emergencies, natural and manmade disasters.  In order to fulfill this mission we provide planning, prevention, education, incident control and mitigation”.

   The Fire Prevention Division continually strives to achieve this goal through code compliance, enforcement and community education. 

The fire prevention duties are conducted by the Deputy Fire Chief, Captains and Lieutenants throughout the year.   As a group we have the responsibility of overseeing and enforcing Massachusetts General Laws-Chapter 148, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts Board of Fire Prevention Regulations 527 CMR 1-50 Fire Code, sections of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts State Building Code and also standards and guidelines set forth by the National Fire Protection Association. 

Over the course of the year, department personnel conducted 2,203 inspections of residential and commercial occupancies, a decrease of 136 inspections from 2007.  The decrease in inspections was expected due to the building trade decline in 2008.  Some of those inspections include: smoke detectors, carbon monoxide alarms, oil burners, propane gas storage, fuel tank removals and installations, tank trucks, commercial fire alarm and sprinkler inspections and state mandated quarterly inspections. 

Throughout 2008 the Walpole Fire Department worked with the town’s Local Emergency Planning Committee (LEPC) on a number of projects.  Most important was the design and distribution of an “Emergency Preparedness Handbook-Preparing for the First 72 Hours of an Emergency or Disaster.”   This handbook was designed for Walpole residents to better prepare themselves in case of an emergency or disaster whether natural or manmade.  This handbook was mailed to every household and local business in the Town of Walpole.  I would like to personally extend the Fire Department’s appreciation to the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency, Massachusetts Region 4A Medical Reserve Corps and most importantly Cheryl O’Driscoll and the Walpole School Department for printing over ten thousand copies of this handbook.  The funding for this booklet was through a Department of Public Health Grant. 

In 2008 the Department of Fire Services and the Massachusetts Environmental Protection Agency developed a Safe Neighborhood Program after a devastating fire, in a chemical company in Danvers-Massachusetts, which destroyed an entire neighborhood.  This joint program inspected forty chemical companies throughout Massachusetts, two from Walpole. 

A letter was sent out to all business in Town that have either a fire alarm or sprinkler system or both reminding them of their obligation to maintain these systems on an annual basis.  This letter identified their responsibility, as required by code, and possible liability for not providing adequate protection for their employee’s and patrons. 

Once again both the Fire Department and the Building Department conducted a number of combined inspections throughout 2008.  In 2005 a new law was established by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts requiring both the building and fire department conduct joint inspections of all licensed liquor establishment within their communities.  This new law was the result of the devastating “Station Nightclub” fire in Warwick Rhode Island. 

The Staff at the building department, under the direction of Building Commissioner Jack Mee, is essential to the goals of the Walpole Fire Departments Fire Prevention Program and we thank them all for their professional relationship.  

The Fire Department also tapped into the endless resources of the Assessor’s Office who have been very helpful and informative about businesses within the town.  Valuable information such as the break down of Industrial, Commercial and Retail occupancies has improved our company inspections of these premises.  Their information, in regards to fire protection systems within these occupancies, has been a great resource.  Always willing to help out in any way possible, we thank Town Assessor Dennis Flis and his staff. 

Grants:  In 2008 the Walpole Fire Department applied and received three grants all through the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.  The first grant was in the amount of $7,600.00, from the Department of Public Safety, to purchase fire fighting equipment.  The second grant was in the amount of $4,200.00, from the Department of Fire Services, to conduct Fire Safety Education to the community of Walpole.  Our final grant was not monetary, we applied for and received fifty (50) bicycle helmets to distribute to children of families that otherwise could not afford them.  These helmets were distributed to the recreation department and to the Marathon House. 

In 2008 the Walpole Fire Department applied for a communications grant, through the federal government, to address several much needed areas of improvements in our Communication System, specifically addressing the following: Base Station’s, Repeaters, Mobile Data Terminals, Mobil Radios, Portable Radios, Pagers, Scott Air Pak Amplifiers and a voice recorder.  As a Communication package this grant will provide us with the resources to make a difference in not only our firefighter’s safety and survival but the safety of our citizens and area communities as well.  This grant request will also provide us with a level of technology that will meet today’s standards, codes and practices.  As of date we still have not receive notification on this grant which is valued at $212,000.00. 

In 2007, the Walpole Fire Department applied for a Fire Prevention Grant as a joint effort between both the Walpole and Sharon, Massachusetts Fire and Building Departments.  This grant was looking to establish a web based Business Self-Fire and Building Inspection Program to target light hazard business occupancies that are not required by codes and regulations to be inspected on an annual basis.  This grant unfortunately was unsuccessful but it is the fire departments goal to put such a program in place in the first quarter of 2009 utilizing in house expertise.  With the establishment of a web-based self inspection program, business owners will have at their disposal Fire Prevention and Life Safety information that they can reference to insure the safety of their staff and customers.