Is Your Home Safe?

Do you ever wonder if you have the right number of smoke detectors for your home? Or if the escape route you've got set up for your family makes the best sense?

Merrimack Fire Department is bringing back its free home safety inspection program for Merrimack families to get a second look at things around their home to make sure they are best prepared in the event of an emergency.

From things like making sure your house is visibly numbered so that emergency personnel can find you when they've been called to help to making sure smoke detectors and carbon monoxide detectors are in working order, members of the fire department will come to your home when it's convenient for you and take a look at your property inside and out for any potential home hazards you should be aware of.

Merrimack Fire Marshal John Manuele said Friday one of the most important things for people to be aware of, to help make an emergency easier for them, is to make sure the house is appropriately marked with the house number using 4-inch high or larger numbers in a visible location. If emergency personnel cannot locate your home immediately, precious time can be lost.

Due to HIPAA laws, the town no longer dispatches to homes based on names, so if you have your name on the mailbox, that is fine, but a number must also be visible, Capt. Manuele said.

The home inspection will take about an hour and the occupant will be left with an inspection form containing recommendations to make your home safer.

Things like pool safety – making sure there's a fence around a pool an motion lights – and talking to residents about hidden dangers with washers and dryers or making sure there is clear access to a home in the event of an emergency and looking at wood stoves, and fireplaces to make sure they appear to be appropriately set up, are just a few of the items on the checklist that will be left behind following the inspection.

Capt. Manuele said they started the program in the fall a couple years ago, and several people took them up on it, but with staffing changes, it became a little burdensome to send out the duty staff. With the revitalization of the program he and his inspector will conduct the majority of inspections at the convenience of the homeowner and sometimes it may be the guys on duty who come out.

“We want to work with the community on this,” Manuele said. “We hope it will open the door to people asking questions and ultimately make them safer in the process.”

Anyone who is interested in taking part in this voluntary home safety inspection is urged to call the Merrimack Fire Department at 424-3690 and ask for the fire prevention department. You can get more information from them and schedule an appointment.