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Monday, June 23, 2025
Incident Response Synopsis - 06/23/2025 - Automatic Fire Alarms

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Incident Alert Synopsis for Monday June, 23 2025

  1. Nature: Alarm - Commercial Structure

Location: Seventh Day Adventist Church (80)

Address: 30007 Cordrey Rd Millsboro, DE 19966

Time:  12:34 p

  1. Nature: Alarm – Residential Automatic Fire Alarm

Address: 26293 Timbercreek Lane Long Neck Shores, DE 19966

Time:13:22 p.

  1. Nature: Alarm - Residential (Single) - General/Fire

Address: 21258 Tarpon Dr Pelican Point, DE 19966

Time:17:04 p.

  1. Nature: Alarm - High Life Hazard - General/Fire

Location: Seventh Day Adventist Church (80)

Address: 30007 Cordrey Rd Millsboro, DE 19966

Time:17:05 p

  1. Nature: Alarm - Residential (Single)

Address: 26419 Pine Cone Dr Pot Nets Coveside, DE 19966

Time:18:06 p.

On Monday, June 23rd, the Indian River Volunteer Fire Company was alerted for multiple automatic alarm incidents that included both residential and commercial structures within the fire district.  Identified herewith is an incident synopsis of these responses as such:

  1. Commercial entity incidents were the result of an alarm system that was awaiting corrective action from the respective alarm company responder; and

  2. Residential entity incidents were individually evaluated and communicated with the respective property occupants.

As the high heat and temperatures continue to impact our region, it is hopeful that more preventative actions will be pursued by the respective property owners to reduce the quantity of these automatic alarm incidents.

Many of these activations were due to operator error, malfunction, system design, unintentional or other rationale and received a full company response to mitigate the incident.

Every unwanted fire alarm is costly, disrupting normal business routines, placing unnecessary strain on our emergency services, and reducing the public’s faith in fire alarms.  An unwanted fire alarm is: any fire alarm signal other than a genuine fire or signal test. The cause of these unwanted fire alarms can be attributed to human behavior - either good intent or malicious, or due to equipment.

  • ‘Good intent’ are calls made in good faith with the belief that there really is a fire.

  • ‘Malicious’ activations are made with the intention of getting the fire and rescue service to attend a non-existent incident.

  • ‘Due to equipment’ activations are incidents initiated by a fire alarm and firefighting equipment activating, such as culinary mishap.

Illustrated herewith are some recommendations for creating action plans to reduce the chance of any unwanted fire alarm activations.

  • Check detector types and their locations – would moving detectors or changing the type used reduce activations? Seek advice from your alarm engineer if necessary.

  • Upgrading automatic fire detection (AFD) systems that are obsolete with more modern technology e.g. ‘multi-sensing’ detectors.

  • Fitting manual call points with protective covers in problem, vulnerable or high traffic areas.

  • Ascertaining whether any false alarms are a result of activating the wrong call points.

  • Keeping automatic fire detection (AFD) systems appropriately maintained.

  • Considering whether a link to an Alarm Receiving Center is necessary or if it is appropriate to suspend the automatic dialing function whilst buildings are occupied or at certain times of the day.

  • Seeking further guidance and advice from their alarm system provider or servicing agent.

Our hope is to increase awareness within our immediate fire district to mitigate the quantity of these unwanted fire alarm incidents