Fall Fire Hydrant Inspections to Begin

MEDIA RELEASE

The Washington Township Fire Department will soon begin the semi-annual maintenance and inspection of fire hydrants throughout the Centerville-Washington Township community. This project is expected to last approximately six weeks beginning September 13 and ending near October 22, 2010.

The regular inspection and maintenance of fire hydrants is essential to ensure adequate water resources during fire and other related emergencies. Should a fire hydrant malfunction or become inaccessible, fire department operations may be hampered. Hydrant deficiencies are identified and corrected as a result of these inspections.

Inspections and maintenance activities routinely take place Monday through Friday between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.

Persons who receive this notice are asked to pass the word to family, friends and neighbors living in the Centerville-Washington Township area.

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Be a Fall Blood Donor

Receive a free, limited edition Octoberfest t-shirt

Washington Township Fire Department is hosting a blood drive, Wednesday, September 22, 2010. The event will be held between 3 pm. and 7 p.m. at the Fire Department Training Room (8320 McEwen Road - 937.433.3083).

Those that register to donate blood will receive a free, limited edition Octoberfest t-shirt * and a free Midas oil change. *Limited sizes available while supplies last.

Required to Donate: A photo ID with your full name. Please bring your donor identification card with you if you have one. Must be 17 or older (16 with signed CBC parental consent form), weigh at least 110 pounds and be in generally good health.

Questions? Call 1-800-388-GIVE. Visit www.DonorTime.com to schedule an appointment.

Unattended Cooking Still Causes Most U.S. Fires

Unattended cooking is still the number one cause of U.S. residential fires. Get the facts; learn to prevent:

COOKING SAFETY

Families spend a lot of time in the kitchen. It is often the favorite place to be together. But many injuries can happen there. To stay safe when you are cooking and eating, here are some tips.

PREVENT COOKING FIRES

• Cooking is the number one cause of home fires. The biggest reason is that people start to cook something on the stove and forget it's there.
• Always stay in the kitchen while cooking on the range, especially when frying food.
• Keep things that can burn, such as dishtowels, paper or plastic bags, and curtains at least three feet away from the range top.
• Keep your cooking area clean. Do not let grease build up on the range top, toaster oven or in the oven.

PREVENT BURNS

• Keep children and pets away from the range when anyone is cooking and keep a close eye on them at all times. Put tape on the floor around the stove. Teach children to stay away from there.
• Before you start to cook, roll up sleeves and use oven mitts. Loose-fitting clothes can touch a hot burner and catch on fire.
• If clothes do catch fire, "Stop, Drop, Roll and Cool" by dropping immediately to the ground, crossing hands over your chest and rolling over and over or back and forth to put out the flames.
• Cool the burned area with cool water right away and seek medical attention for serious burns.
• If you can, cook on the back burners.
• Always turn pot handles toward the back of the range to prevent small children from reaching and pulling down a hot pan.
• Food cooked in a microwave can be dangerously hot. When you take off the lid or wrap, wear oven mitts and be very careful moving the dish from the oven to the counter. Stir the food and test it before you serve it to children.
• Keep pans, hot drinks and trays that have just come out of the oven away from the edge of counters and tables where children cannot touch them.
• Do not use a tablecloth or placemat if very young children are in the home. If children pull on the tablecloth, hot liquid and food can come down and burn them.
• Hot tap water causes thousands of burns every year. For safer temperatures, keep your water heater set at 120 degrees Fahrenheit.

OTHER SAFETY TIPS

• Electrical outlets in the kitchen, and especially near the kitchen sink, should have Ground-Fault Circuit Interrupters (GFCIs). This will prevent a dangerous shock. If you don't have them, have an electrician put these in your home.
• Keep things you use a lot where you can reach them easily. Use a stepladder to get to things on a high shelf.
• Post emergency numbers in visible areas.

These tips were provided by the Home Safety Council. Learn more about cooking safety and other ways to stay safe at their web site: www.homesafetycouncil.org.

Visit Washington Township Fire Department at www.washingtontwp.org/fire

Bicycle injuries and deaths may be more common than you know

Get the facts and learn how to prevent them:

Facts About Bicycle Injuries to Children

• Each year, approximately 140 children are killed as bicyclists.
• Children sustain more than 275,000 nonfatal bicycle injuries each year.
• Nearly 690 children are injured daily due to bicycle-related crashes.
• A total of 251,366 total child bicyclist injuries were recorded in 2005.
• An estimated 14,000 youth bicyclists were injured involving a motor vehicle in 2005.
• More than 70 percent of children ages 5 to 14 ride a bicycle regularly.
• National estimates report that bicycle helmet use among child bicyclists ranges from 15 percent to 25 percent.
• Apart from the automobile, bicycles are tied to more childhood injuries than any other consumer product

Ways to Prevent Bicycling Injuries and Death

The single most effective safety device available to reduce head injury and death from bicycle crashes is a helmet.

• Make it a rule: every time you and your child ride a bike, wear a bicycle helmet that meets the safety standards developed by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission.
• If your child is reluctant to wear a helmet, try letting him or her choose his own.

Helmet fit is important.

• Make sure the helmet fits and your child knows how to put it on correctly.
• A helmet should sit on top of the head in a level position, and should not rock forward, backward or side to side.
• The helmet straps must always be buckled but not too tightly.

Try the Eyes, Ears and Mouth Test:

• EYES check: Position the helmet on your head. Look up and you should see the bottom rim of the helmet. The rim should be one to two finger-widths above the eyebrows.
• EARS check: Make sure the straps of the helmet form a "V" under your ears when buckled. The strap should be snug but comfortable.
• MOUTH check: Open your mouth as wide as you can. Do you feel the helmet hug your head? If not, tighten those straps and make sure the buckle is flat against your skin.

Use different helmets for different activities.

• Children should always wear a helmet for all wheeled sports activities.
• A properly-fitted bike helmet is just as effective when riding a scooter, roller skating or inline skating.
• However, when skateboarding andlong boarding, make sure your child wears a skateboarding helmet.

Proper equipment fit and maintenance are also important for safety.

• Ensure proper bike fit by bringing the child along when shopping for a bike. Buy a bicycle that is the right size for the child, not one he will grow into. When sitting on the seat, the child’s feet should be able to touch the ground.
• Make sure the reflectors are secure, brakes work properly, gears shift smoothly and tires are tightly secured and properly inflated.

Always model and teach proper behavior. Learn the rules of the road, and obey all traffic laws.

• Ride on the right side of the road, with traffic, not against. Stay as far to the right as possible.
• Use appropriate hand signals.
• Respect traffic signals, stopping at all stop signs and stop lights.
• Stop and look left, right and left again before entering a street or crossing an intersection. Look back and yield to traffic coming from behind before turning left.

Adult supervision of child cyclists is essential until you are sure a child has good traffic skills and judgment.

• Cycling should be restricted to off-roads (e.g. sidewalks and paths) until age 10.
• Children should be able to demonstrate riding competence and knowledge of the rules of the road before cycling with traffic.

Children should not ride a bicycle when it’s dark, in the fog or in other low-visibility conditions.

• If riding at dusk, dawn or in the evening is unavoidable, use a light on the bike and make sure it has reflectors as well.
• Wear clothes and accessories that have retro reflective materials to improve biker visibility to motorists.

These tips were provided by Safe Kids Worldwide. Find out more about bicycle and skating safety, as well as other ways to keep your family safe at their web site: www.safekids.org.

Visit Washington Township Fire Department at www.washingtontwp.org/fire

The 62nd Annual Firefighters Ice Cream Social is this Sunday, August 8!

The Washington Township Firefighter’s Association announces the 62nd Annual Ice Cream Social. The event will be held on Sunday, August 8, 2010 from 11:00am to 6:00pm at Fire Station 41, 163 Maple Avenue, Centerville, Ohio.

The Ice Cream Social is a great way to support and learn more about the important role that the Washington Township Fire Department has in the community. Great food and live demonstrations bring everyone together for a day of fun. The children’s activities let kids pretend to be real firefighters and emergency responders, as well as play games and have fun.

The Ice Cream Social provides many opportunities for people to get close and interact with emergency workers and to see the emergency equipment. Much of Washington Township’s fire and EMS vehicles will be on display. There will be many exciting Fire/Rescue demonstrations, including a visit from Miami Valley Hospital’s CareFlight helicopter.
This year the menu will include barbecue chicken, hamburger, hot dogs corn-on-the-cob, all the fixings, and of course, lots of fresh ice cream and pie. Dozens of valuable prizes will also be raffled this year; donated from various area businesses. Proceeds from the Ice Cream Social will help enable the Fire Department to better assist the community in a variety of emergency situations.

Each year more than 830 children die from drowning. Learn ways to prevent this tragedy.

Pool Safety

Pools and spas can be lots of fun. But they can also be very dangerous, especially to children. The Home Safety Council encourages families to follow the safety steps below to avoid injuries in and around pools and spas.

When children are in or near the water, a grownup should watch them very carefully. Do not take your eyes off them. Older children should not be left in charge of younger children in the pool area.

If you have a pool or spa, install a fence that goes all the way around it. The fence should close and latch by itself. It should be least five feet high.

Here are additional tips for pool and water safety:

• Always keep gates closed and latched. Never prop a gate open.
• Do not leave furniture near the fence that would enable a child to climb over it.
• Keep the pool area clear of things you could trip on.
• Keep a cordless, water resistant telephone with emergency numbers posted in the pool area.
• Keep poolside rescue equipment close by. Equipment should include a rescue pole measuring at least 10-12 feet and a ring buoy with line. Do not allow children to play with these tools.
• Keep a life vest approved by the U.S. Coast Guard on hand. Anyone who is not a good swimmer should wear a vest.
• Use plastic instead of glassware in the pool area.
• For extra safety, use a pool alarm to alert you if someone falls into the pool. Recent studies show that sub surface pool alarms are most effective. These alarms are not substitutes for adult supervision of children.
• Keep spas and hot tubs covered and locked when not in use.
• Remove excess water from pool and spa covers.
• Completely remove pool and spa covers before anyone gets in.
• Chlorine-based pool care products can explode and catch on fire. Always follow manufacturer’s instructions when using pool chemicals and store chemicals in a dry place away from heat sources.
• Lock all pool chemicals in a secure cabinet out of children’s reach.

Source: www.homesafetycouncil.org

You can also view a video on why drowning prevention is so important at the Safe Kids Worldwide web site: http://bit.ly/skwtf

Visit Washington Township Fire Department at www.washingtontwp.org/fire

Have you prepared for emergencies? Plan with your family now; you won’t have to worry later.

Communications Plan

Every family needs to know what they would do if something bad happens. Taking steps to prepare ahead of time is very important.

Being prepared starts with talking about it. Tell your children it is always good to have a plan. Tell them the grownups who love them will be there to help them. Develop a family communication plan so you would know how to find each other if you are in different places when the disaster happens. Put together disaster supply kits to keep in your home.

Talk About Disasters

 

• Talk about the kinds of disasters that can happen where you live.
• Tell your children that you or another grownup will be there to help if something happens. Talk about how a relief worker, firefighter, police officer, teacher, neighbor or doctor might help.
• Make plans so everyone will know what to do.
• Pick safe places in your home where you can go if there is a tornado.
• Pick safe places to take cover if there is an earthquake.
• Put a list of emergency numbers by each telephone in your home. Tell your children what each number is for. You should also list the work and cell phone numbers of family members.

Your communication plan should include:

• Places in and out of your town where you and your family could meet.
• Phone numbers of in-town contacts.
• An address and phone number of someone out of town (this could be a friend or relative).
• You can write this information on a card that each family member keeps with them.

Be Prepared

•  Put together the things you will need for an emergency.
• Be “Ready-to-Go” or “Ready-to-Stay” in an emergency.

Get more tips and information at the Home Safety Council web site: http://bit.ly/dep0Sa

Visit Washington Township Fire Department at www.washingtontwp.org/fire

Washington Township Joins Nixle: Get up to date info by phone and email

Washington Township is now using technology to connect to residents and anyone else interested in hearing from us. This is in addition to the account already provided by the Fire Department.

The township will use Nixle, a community information service that is free to viewers. Information posted by Washington Township can be viewed on the Nixle website. Users may also subscribe to receive messages automatically by text to a cell phone and/or email.

Subscribers of Nixle can receive notices posted by Washington Township by visiting the website (www.Nixle.com) and subscribing. Setting up an account is easy and, once registered, you can personalize your locations and preferences with regard to the type of messages received. Account registration information is stored on a secure server and Nixle does not sell personal information to third parties.

Washington Township Fire Department has been using Nixle for several months to disseminate community information (do you subscribe?). The Montgomery County Sheriff’s office is planning to launch their Nixle account later this year.

Be a Part of Something Great!

Sometimes a person feels the need to do something more than they are already doing. Perhaps they feel a need to contribute more. Maybe they want to make a difference that they can’t make in their current career. Or, maybe they hope to be part of a greater cause.

What could you do?

If you were given the training, would you be willing to:

• respond to fire, rescue and public service alarms?
• use equipment such as fire extinguishers, pry bars, hooks, ropes, aerial ladders, power tools and self-contained breathing apparatus?
• administer emergency aid to sick and injured persons including techniques to restore cardiopulmonary function?
• give public education presentations on fire and life safety throughout the community?

Can you really make a difference?

Yes. We need your help. If it weren’t for volunteers, three–fourths of the United States would be without adequate fire protection… including Washington Township and the City of Centerville. And, few jobs offer the challenges, and rewards, that the volunteer fire, rescue and emergency service offers. Truthfully, the job is not for everyone. You do need courage, plenty of dedication, and a willingness to learn new skills.

Find out more!

Learn more about training, benefits and how you might qualify. Visit the web site at http://www.washingtontwp.org/fire/partpaid.html or stop by Washington Township Fire Headquarters, 8320 McEwen Road, Dayton, OH 45458

Washington Township is An Equal Opportunity Employer.

Know What To Do If There's Fire

This video specifically addresses fires on the stove. Produced by FEMA and the United States Fire Administration.