The Exchange Club of Columbus received an update on local fire safety issues from Deputy Chief Greg Lang and Fire Marshall Ricky Shores from the Columbus Fire Department. The Columbus Fire Department has provided services to our community for 170 years. They currently have 14 locations and have an excellent ISO rating of 2 – they are working for a #1 rating, but are very proud of the #2 rating (on a scale of 1-10 with 1 being the best!). Fire Marshall Shores shared some interesting statistics with us – last year there was only one fire death in Columbus, there was only $5 million dollars in property losses, there were 300 residential fires, and there were 29,000 requests for services, which means about 120-130 calls a day. It was a ”good” year. They spend much of their time targeting audiences for training in the 9 years of age and below range and the 65 and older range. He reported that 70 percent of fires start in the kitchen. He talked a lot about fire safety and what we should be doing. He stressed three facts for us to consider – make sure there are two ways to get out of your home fast and safely, make sure you have a working smoke detector, and be aware of home safety (proper use of extension cords, proper use of space heaters, proper kitchen safety, etc). We are fortunate to have leaders like Chief Lang and Fire Marshall Shores providing us exceptional EMS and fire services.
