Fire departments do more than just put out fires, and recently, the Elmwood Park Fire Department opened its doors to to show the public just what their job entails.
Community members were invited to the Elmwood Park Fire Department’s main station on Conti Parkway Sept. 5 for the department’s Safety Fair and Open House.
Elmwood Park Fire Department Lt. Mike Terzo, who organized the event with Lt. Matt Doro, said they had the event to let people see what the Fire Department really does.
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“It’s not just about fire prevention anymore, but it’s about fire prevention and fire safety,” he said.
Doro said it’s also about connecting with the community.
“We’re learning that the fire service is changing, local government is changing and we need to be more citizen-friendly,” he said. “It was a way for us to be more approachable.”
By the turnout of the event, Terzo said they achieved that goal.
But it could have been what they had available at the event. Firefighters from the fire divisions’ technical unit repelled on ropes from the top of Elmwood Park Library. A helicopter landed in the Village Hall parking lot. They also reenacted how a quickly a fire can spread when there are no sprinklers installed in a residence.
Nearly all the members of the fire department came out to the event.
“We had ninety-eight percent participation from the whole department to make it as successful as it was,” Terzo said.
Twitter: @DavidDPollard