Cheltenham Fire Company is an all volunteer fire company.  This means that our firefighters are members of the community with jobs and commitments just like everyone else.  In addition to that, our members have chosen to step up to help you in your time of need.  This is not a small task.  The initial firefighter certification is over 170 hours, and that’s only the initial basic training.  Members continue to attend more specialized training at county fire academies and in house at our station.  Members are also responsible for upkeep on the building and apparatus.  We are more than willing to maintain our equipment and train.  In response to our service, below are some things that you should be aware of in your daily lives...

Not only is it important to PROMINENTLY display your address in front of your property, it's also a Cheltenham Township Ordinance. We can't help you if we can't find you. Please mark your address in large numbers in a place that will be easily recognizable to emergency responders.

While numbers on the curb seem like a good idea, they are frequently blocked by parked vehicles. Place your address on your mailbox, the front of your home, or put up a post on the front of your property. Reflective numbers are a great idea, but at least use numbers that contrast the color of the background they are put on. For instance if the surface is white, use a black number.

During daytime hours there is a building mounted siren that blows when our company is dispatched to an emergency.  This not only helps alert our members, but should alert you also.  If you are close enough to hear this siren, please be more aware that our members will be responding to our station (volunteer firefighters are more often coming from home or work to staff our apparatus, they are not normally at the station).  

Also be aware that the trucks will be responding to the scene of the emergency.  Please yield to both our members that may be responding with a red or blue light and our apparatus.  Please also keep an eye on your children, kids are drawn to sirens. 

Any vehicle with red flashing lights is an emergency vehicle, whether mounted on a Fire Truck, Ambulance or a personal vehicle. Most times a red light will be accompanied by a siren. You are required by law to pull to the right and stop. Remember, siren & flashing red lights... pull to the right.

A personal vehicle with flashing blue lights signifies a volunteer responding to an emergency. This is a courtesy light asking for you to yield the right of way to the vehicle responding. These vehicles will not have a siren with them. Please allow these vehicles the right of way to respond to an emergency.

When we arrive at the scene of a building fire, the most important thing that you can tell us is “everyone is out of the house”.  Our first priority is of course life safety.  If there is the possibility of someone being trapped in the building, our members are going to take on a greater risk to rescue them.  If you have properly placed, working smoke detectors, they will alert you and your family members so that you can escape before becoming trapped.  Please see our Fire Prevention page for further information.

Carbon Monoxide is a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas that is a normal by product of combustion.  If you have any fuel burning appliances (gas stove, gas hot water heater, gas heater, oil heater, kerosene space heater, etc) then you need a CO detector in your home.  If you live in a multiple occupancy building (twin home, duplex, apartment, etc.) then you also need a CO detector.  Your neighbors may have fuel burning appliances and CO can travel to your residence from theirs.  CO is normally vented to the outside of your home and is not a problem.  If there is an issue with the appliance or vent, CO can back up into your home and kill you with no warning other than flu like symptoms.  

CO slowly steals your body of oxygen by not allowing your blood to transport it properly.  If your CO detector activates: evacuate everyone from your residence and any attached homes, leave your windows and doors closed, call 911 and await our arrival.  By keeping your residence closed, it maintains the atmosphere that activated your detector so that we can meter it.  This helps us determine if there is an actual problem or a detector malfunction.  DO NOT DISREGARD AN ACTIVATION, again CO is colorless, odorless, tasteless and can only be evaluated with a meter.

Whether you are at home or in a public building, PLEASE ALWAYS REACT TO AN ALARM (and teach your friends and family members to do the same).  Most public buildings have fire alarm systems that alert the entire building when there is a problem anywhere in the building.  If you hear the alarm, leave the building. 

Just because you do not immediately see fire or smoke, this does not mean that there is not a problem elsewhere in the building.  Not only will reacting to an alarm keep you safe, but it will make our job easier.  We will be able to address the problem quicker if we do not need to evacuate people first. Please remember that NOTHING is more important than life safety.  

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact us at: info@cheltenhamfirecompany.org