Office of the Essex Fire Marshal

01/08/2022

Help us help you. Help clear hydrants if they are covered with snow.

01/07/2022

Here comes the snow

01/05/2022

Use caution this morning roads are very icy

01/05/2022

Fifty-two million Americans aged 65 or older make up 16% of the total US population, yet this age bracket experiences disproportionate injuries and deaths from fire and falls. Falls are the leading cause of death from unintentional injuries for older adults. The risk factors associated with aging populations are similar for fires and falls, making it critical to educate older adults on adopting prevention and response behaviors.

01/05/2022

Researchers estimate that smoke alarms could have prevented almost half of the annual fire fatalities. Smoke alarms alert you to potential dangers that your senses cannot detect, such as a slow, smoldering fire in an overloaded electrical outlet.
However, it is more dangerous to rely on a smoke alarm that does not work properly than it is to have no smoke alarm in your home. Check the operation of the smoke alarm every month, and replace batteries once a year. Replace smoke detectors that are 10 years or older. The date is stamped on the back of the detector.

If smoke from cooking sets off your alarm, never remove the battery to disable the alarm. You may forget to replace and reconnect the battery when cooking smoke is no longer a problem, and the disabled alarm offers a false sense of security. Consult a professional if the alarm continuously sounds from cooking smoke. The alarm may be located too close to the kitchen, or an exhaust fan may be needed in the cooking area.

Consider the manufacturer's suggestions on where to locate the smoke alarm. All smoke alarms should be placed on the ceiling or a wall near the ceiling in central locations. Most manufacturers suggest at least one smoke alarm for each floor. Some floor plans may require additional locations. Always select an alarm that has been tested and display the seal of a testing organization.

01/05/2022

The tragic aspect of home fires is that many could have been prevented -- if someone had taken the proper safety measures ahead of time.

People's actions and how they fail to consider fire safety are common to all major causes of household fires. Major causes include improper use and maintenance of heating appliances; improper use and care of electrical appliances; lack of functioning smoke detectors; and careless use of smoking materials.
Two-thirds of all electrical fires begin in plugs or cords on fixed appliances such as refrigerators, air conditioners or lamps. Frayed cords expose electrical wires that spark on contact with each other or anything that can ground the electrical current.
Electrical plugs and cords usually deteriorate gradually, making damage difficult to detect. Inspect all appliance cords and plugs for wear at least once a year. If you discover a frayed cord or loose prongs on a plug, discontinue use until repairs can be made.

Never overload electrical outlets and circuits. Overloaded electrical outlets, or circuits that supply power to several outlets, is a major cause of residential fires. Overloaded outlets and circuits carry too much electricity, which generates heat in undetectable amounts. The heat causes wear on the internal wiring system and can ignite a fire.
All wiring systems have circuit breakers or fuses that disconnect power when circuits become overloaded. However, an improperly sized fuse or breaker can cancel this built-in safety feature.

To prevent overloading, never plug more than two appliances into an outlet at once or "piggyback" extra appliances on extension cords or wall outlets. Use only outlets designed to handle multiple plugs.

Give special consideration to appliances that use 1,000 or more watts, such as air conditioners, refrigerators, hot plates, irons, microwave ovens, dishwashers, heaters, and deep fryers. Avoid plugging them into the same outlet or circuit. To use these appliances safely, know which outlets are connected to the same electrical circuit in your home. Do not exceed 1,500 watts for each outlet or circuit. Wattage requirements are listed in appliance manufacturer's instructions.

Begin a habit of regularly checking electrical cords and outlets. Fires that begin in these areas are difficult to detect, yet easy to prevent.

01/04/2022

In this video, the Essex Fire Department thanks the First Due team for their help in deploying an emergency project using Community Connect to help distribut...

01/04/2022

Just as an FYI, this is not an acceptable replacement for a commercial kitchen hood system. Always consult a professional hood company.

01/03/2022

A successful day getting our residents their COVID test kits. Thank you Essex residents for your patience and understanding during the whole process. We had a couple hiccups but overall we were able to get the kits out to those who registered through Community Connect.

01/03/2022

The registration window for COVID test kits has closed for today. As soon as another shipment is received we will make a notification for the next distribution date. Thank You for your patience and understanding.

01/03/2022

If you have any questions on the process to conduct the home COVID-19 test. See the video below that shows you the process.

Flowflex SARS-CoV-2 Antigen Rapid Test (Self-testing)

01/02/2022

Town of Essex
Municipal Distribution of COVID-19 Rapid Test Kits
The Town of Essex has a limited number of COVID-19 Rapid Test kits to distribute to Essex residents. You can sign up using the Town’s Community Connect program and request a test kit IF you meet one or more of the following requirements.

You are a town resident of Essex, Centerbrook, or Ivoryton
You or household members are symptomatic
You are caring for or visiting a vulnerable person (i.e. senior citizen or immune compromised).

Only one test kit per household will be distributed.

The kits will be distributed at Essex Fire Engine Company #1 located at 11 Saybrook Road in Essex on Monday, January 3rd from 2PM to 4 PM.

If you cannot pick up the test kit between 2-4pm on Monday, then do not request a kit. Kits will not be held. All kits will be distributed tomorrow.

STEP 1: You MUST register via Community Connect.
Register for Community Connect online at

https://www.communityconnect.io/info/ct-townofessex

Click on residents and create an account. Complete as much information as you can about your residence.

If you already have a Community Connect account then proceed with step 2 after 7 pm tonight.

STEP 2: Request a COVID-19 Test Kit
NOTE: the request window will go live at 7:00pm tonight, Sunday, Jan 2, 2022. You must complete Step 1 (above) prior to requesting a test kit.

On your Community Connect home page, you will see an icon in the right lower portion of the screen called Burn Permits. The COVID-19 test kit request is in the Burn Permits window.

Click on the COVID-19 test kit icon and complete the application.

The application request will be reviewed by the Emergency Management Director to verify your residency. You will receive a notification if your request has been approved. If approved the notification will say ACTIVE. If the request is rejected, the notification will say DENIED. Requests will be denied when there are no more kits available.

Print the approval email and bring the email and a valid identification showing your address associated with the confirmation email with you to the distribution site at Essex Fire Department. Please understand that we have a very limited supply of test kits at this time. There will possibly be another round of test kits available in the future. We will send out notifications when that occurs.

Do not go to the firehouse without a valid email confirmation and valid identification associating yourself with the address you registered for. If you do go without these items, you will be turned away. Rest assured, if you register and receive an Approved/Active confirmation, there will be a kit waiting for you at the firehouse.

Please note: We will be reviewing the submissions for duplicate addresses and will reject any that appear to be inconsistent with our goal of distributing one test kit per household.