A multi-agency fire protection project is now underway to remove potential fire hazards in high-risk fire sections on the American River Parkway. The work, which kicked off on Nov. 29, is funded by grant money and will take place on Regional Parks property adjacent to homes and subdivisions. “Until this grant money was secured, there had not been adequate resources available to improve the level of fire protection in these high risk areas,” said Steve Flannery, Chief Ranger for County Regional Parks. “The primary objective of this project is to reduce the risk of fire burning up into the tree tops because canopy fires are often destructive, fast moving, and difficult to control. Lower tre

At approximately 4:04 A.M. Sunday morning Sacramento Firefighters responded to reports of an apartment building fire at 8010 Pocket Road. When crews arrived they found heavy fire coming from the front door and rear balcony of an upstairs apartment unit. The fire quickly spread through the attic, affecting a second upstairs unit, causing fire commanders to request a second and third alarm response. This brought over eighty firefighters to the scene The occupant of the apartment where the fire started was awakened by a smoke detector, enabling him to escape his apartment without injury. Fire crews assisted evacuating other occupants that had not yet evacuated the eight, unit building within

Q: My husband and I will be retiring soon and we’ve decided to sell our house. We’ve heard that we may need to replace our smoke alarms before selling. Does California have a law about this? -Anne A: Most people are aware of the obvious benefits of installing and maintaining smoke detectors throughout their homes, but many would be surprised to know that it’s mandatory. California law requires every single-family dwelling and factory-built housing to have operable smoke detectors in designated areas. Furthermore, the smoke detectors must be approved and listed by the State Fire Marshal and installed according to state regulations. (Cal. Health & Safety Code § 13113.8.) Other types of res

If you have changed the battery in your chirping smoke detector and it still chirps, you might think your detector is bad. Before you replace that smoke detector or go out and purchase another new pack of nine-volt batteries, there are a couple things you should know about your smoke detector, and a few things you can do to address this problem. There are several different types of smoke detectors, however, the most current model detectors found in homes and apartments operate by low-voltage electrical wiring with a battery backup. These smoke detectors have internal processors that store error codes, and a week battery chirp is a common error code that may be retained, even after the o

This Sunday, October 11, 2009, the Sacramento Police and Fire Departments, along with Sacramento CERT, will be holding a public safety fair. The fair will be at the Public Safety Center located at 5770 Freeport Boulevard from 11:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. The event is sure to be fun and educational for the entire family and will include many activities including fingerprinting for kids, equipment displays, fire extinguisher demonstration, DUI simulation goggles, Sparky the fire dog, USAR Rescue Dog demo, Auto Extrication demo, CERT trailer, Police K-9 demonstrations, safety presentations, crime prevention information, first aid demonstration, blood pressure checks, a bounce house for the kid

Kings fans welcomed their new players to Sacramento. This was in a small neighborhood Midtown park. Attendance was reported as a few hundred. Pretty low turnout for such an event. The event was arranged at the last minute and in a venue that had never been used by the Kings before.  Another regionally advertised event, The Block Concert Series, was occuring at the same time.  The neighborhood was freaked out when high powered pyrotechnics were illegally fired into the neighborhood at the end of this event. This was callous disregard for the safety of the lives and property of this neighborhood.  To understand the full implications of what occurred, speak with Niko King or Jim Doucette  in

Starting today at 12:00 P.M. at the corner of Greenback and Sunrise, at the Sunrise Mall, many local off duty Firefighters will be out in the streets, with their fire boots, collecting donations for the Fire Fighters Burn Institute.   The Fire Fighters Burn Institute is a local non profit organization that many of your local Firefighters support and take great pride in. Sometimes out of tragedy, good things happen, and the FFBI is a good example of this!   In 1972, a jet airplane attempting to take off from Sacramento Executive Airport, crashed into a crowded Farrell's ice cream parlor, killing 22 people and burning many others. A Sacramento firefighter, Gene LaVine, and eight members of

This years California Wildland Fire Season is nearing its end. This past fire season has been an ugly and deadly one. But here in Sacramento we are entering our "Urban Fire Season". What I mean by that is this is the time of year where we start seeing more structure fires and unfortunately this is usually the time of year that we experience our fire deaths. More people are spending their time indoors for obvious reasons. With that we have fires that are caused by defective heating equipment, fireplaces, candles, cooking, and the all too common, "smoking". Now is the perfect time to go through and check the safety of your home. It's is also a very good time to sit down with your family and