News & Events

The Enfield Fire Department was recently awarded a $251,748.00 Fire Prevention and Safety Grant by the Federal Emergency Management Agency which will allow the fire department to spearhead a campaign promoting fire and life safety across Enfield in cooperation with all five of the town’s fire departments.

Beginning on Friday October 22nd, 2010 and continuing over the course of the next several months teams of uniformed firefighters from each of the town’s fire departments will be visiting thousands of homes throughout Enfield in an effort to promote fire and life safety and reduce the potential for injury in the home. The campaign, named “We Care” will include a voluntary home safety survey and the installation of a new dual sensor long-life battery operated smoke detector in one and two family homes throughout Enfield built prior to 1986. Homes built or substantially renovated after October 1st of 1985 must by Code be equipped with AC powered smoked detectors and are therefore not included in the campaign.

The firefighters will work from a list of eligible homes and systematically move through the community to complete the campaign which targets over 11,000 homes. Residents should be aware that the firefighters working the campaign will be in uniform, carry fire department identification and because they are on-call they will travel with a fire engine. The campaign will benefit the residents of the community by;

Promoting a home fire and life safety hazards survey with the occupants,
Offering to install one 10 year lithium-ion battery operated dual sensor smoke detector,
Promoting smoke and carbon monoxide detector awareness,
Delivery of an informational fire and life safety literature packet, and
Collecting special needs information to aid emergency responders in the event of a fire or medical emergency at the home.

The “We Care” campaign will be an important focus of the fire prevention efforts of the Enfield Fire Departments which will conduct the campaign out of all six firehouses. On weekdays and weekends between 9:00 AM and 8:00 PM firefighters will work from a list of homes arranged by street to visit each home that is eligible to receive a smoke detector. Homeowners that are not home when the firefighters come through will notice a door hanger card is left containing the number of their neighborhood firehouse to call and arrange for the firefighters to return.

According to the United States Fire Administration, over 3,000 people were lost in fires across America last year, many in homes that lacked properly installed and operational smoke detectors. To help address this problem and improve the effectiveness of programs like this, the grant tasked the fire departments with installing the smoke detectors rather than simply distributing them.

Because of the grant, there is no charge to the residents for the “We Care” smoke detector and fire safety program, FEMA provided over $226,000.00 of the funds and the fire departments share in the remaining costs. Cooperative sponsorships are encouraged and the Miller Farms Family Markets – ShopRite of Enfield has already graciously provided all of the printed literature bags used in the program. Persons with any questions about the program are urged to call the Enfield Fire Department at 860-745-1878 or 860-741-3114 or visit the Enfield Fire Department website at www.EnfieldFire.org.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Anyone wishing to drop off a 20 lb. propane cylinder tank can do so Monday through Friday from 8:00 am to 4:30 p.m. at our station on Weymouth Road. Please call 741-3114 prior to your arrival so that we may assist you with off loading the cylinders.

Because of the arrangement we have with a cylinder vendor that recycles the cylinders, we can only accept propane cylinders of the 20 - 40 lb. size which are those typically used on gas grills and campers.

The fire department has no special provisions for disposal of the following type cylinders nor is any special disposal method required, instead homeowners having the following type cylinders should dispose of them in the routine rubbish pickup:

Consumer sized used or spent helium and nitrogen cylinders used to fill balloons (cylinders typically purchased with party balloon kits at retail outlets) (
Consumer size propane torch cylinders ("Bernz-O-Matic") and portable / camping gas fired grill cylinders.

Industrial or contractor type cylinders similar to those used by plumbers, welders and auto body or auto repair mechanics should be disposed of by contacting an industrial gas supplier and arranging to have the cylinders picked up by the supplier or dropped off at their location. Examples of these cylinders would be acetylene, propane, oxygen, hydrogen and similar materials in cylinders larger than the 16 - 48 oz. consumer grade products.

If you have questions about disposal of old pressurized cylinders, please call the fire station or contact an industrial gas supplier. Please do NOT transport the cylinders to the fire house or any other location until you have been advised of the safe means of doing so and the cylinder contents have been identified.

Begining in 2008 and continuing each year, the Enfield Fire Department intends to host a Memorial Ceremony at its Weymouth Road Firehouse location (Station #2) to commemorate the events of September 11th, 2001 and honor the memory of all those lost on that fateful day. The ceremony takes place in the area of the new 9/11 Memorial Garden constructed at Station #2 and pictured below.