Information  

 

    

GREEN REFLECTIVE HOUSE NUMBERS HELP US FIND AND HELP YOU!

Call the secretary at 330-658-2112 to order a reflective house number sign.

House number installation is now available until the winter season begins.

Please specify if would like horizontal or vertical numbers.

 

 

Weather Warning Siren Information

 

Installation of the weather warning sirens took place from December 18-22, 2000. Periodic testing of the sirens will occur during the month of January. These tests could be just a couple of seconds to about 30 seconds. We also expect to regularly test the siren system with full sound at least once a month on the first Saturday of the month at noon. We also expect to "growl" test the sirens once a week on Tuesday evenings at 7:00 PM. A "growl" test is about a 2 second test just to see if the siren will start. If more frequent testing is determined to be required we will publicize that information before starting the more frequent soundings.

An actual warning will be a continuous sounding of the sirens for three minutes. Upon hearing an actual warning, please turn on your weather radio to determine the reason for the warning and take appropriate action. Most weather warnings warrant taking cover in a tornado type protection. This type of protection is generally in the basement or in a small totally enclosed interior room such as a closet or bathroom. In any case, stay away from windows. More information will be published in the Chippewa Township Newsletter.

 

The pancake breakfast proceeds have helped the firefighter's association purchase a GPS (global positioning system) device. This device will allow us to very accurately tell "Life Flight" type helicopters where in the world we are within about six feet. This should reduce the time it takes for the helicopter to find the accident location. It will also be used to complete fire report information that has to be reported to the State of Ohio Fire Marshall's office.

 

New ISO info - Chippewa Township Fire Department achieves the Class 5 rating for Doylestown. This is a great step for a volunteer fire department. - ISO is the acronym for Insurance Services Office, which is the fire department grading agency for insurance companies. Currently Doylestown is an ISO class 6 for insurance policy rating. The best possible class is class 1; only Cincinnati with the best water supply system will get such a classification. The worst possible is a class 10; areas with no fire departments will get this classification. An area with no fire hydrants, but with a fire department will be class 9. Insurance agents have some latitude in classifying a property where there are no fire hydrants, but do have a fire department, if that property is deemed to be close enough to a hydrant and if the fire department has sufficient water carrying capacity. The Chippewa Township Fire Department can respond with 5,000 gallons, mutual aid providing many more gallons. We underwent a classification study in December 1999 and the results were gratifying. We expected to maintain our class 6 rating, but were hoping we bettered ourselves to a class 5.

We did achieve the Class 5 rating. This was the result of much work on the part of your volunteer fire department. We have worked since 1985 to achieve this rating with a great deal of that work being done in the last year, tying down all the little nitty gritty items that ISO looks for. We immediately started working toward our next rating review when we expect to improve our rating in the non-hydrant areas of the Township.

The blue reflective "DRY HYDRANT" signs that are going up in the township are part of that effort to improve the non-hydrant area rating. These signs are to direct mutual aid fire departments to the "dry fire hydrants" that have been installed. A "dry hydrant" is a piping connection to a lake, pond, or other water source so that a fire truck may suck water from the water source to transport to a fire scene. We have also developed a system of a temporary water piping system from the dry hydrant at Dohner's Lake to the Galehouse Lumber / Trusco area.

We also have instituted a more formal inspection program to meet the requirements of ISO. Buildings where people gather, such as schools and churches are on our priority list for a formal inspection. As time moves on all businesses open to the public will receive a formal inspection. Additional personnel on the department have been trained to do this work.

 

Your fire department has taken delivery of a new "thermal imaging camera". This camera will enable the firefighters to see through the dark and the smoke of a fire to quickly find any victims and then the seat of the fire. It will also enable the firefighters, in some cases, to determine the location of the fire in a building before entering the building. This camera is capable of showing any hot spots to locate a fire or to put out the last lingering burning spots. For more information on  the Thermal Imaging Camera, please visit Bullard's web site.

 

Thank you for the support you, the public have given us. Your support has allowed us to improve our ISO rating, and our fire fighting effectiveness.

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