The Fire Department  has been receiving calls requesting birthday parties at the firehouse.  We do not host birthday parties at the firehouse. Some of the confusion may come from members birthdays being displayed on the calender.

Chief Karl

Congratulations to 2nd Lieutenant Corey Gilchrist and 2nd Lieutenant Mike Glass!

Just in time for Memorial Day, the September 11th memorial rests in its permanent home in front of New Canaan Fire Headquarters.

While returning from a call related to hurricane Irene on Sunday, August 28, Firefighters encountered a fish in distress in the middle of Valley Road.

 
“We were heading back from a call and I noticed that there was a fish on the road,” said Captain, Mike Socci, “there was a little bit of life left in him, we gave him some water on his gills to try to revive him, but it was too late.”
 
Firefighters assume the fish got to the road when a nearby pond flooded. Streets around town still continue to be flooded due to the excess rain. Residents are urged to stay off the roads until the curfew is lifted.
 
Photo by Firefighter Duffy Sasser

Office of Emergency Management Press Release

Sunday, August 28, 2011 8am

As landfall of Hurricane Irene is imminent, the overnight winds have left multiple roads closed due to downed trees – many involving power lines.  Until the winds abate and it is safe for CL&P linemen to venture out, clean-up cannot begin.  Where possible, downed trees that do not involve wires will be cleared as soon as safely possible.

For the safety of all residents, effective last at midnight a curfew was enacted for the town of New Canaan.  No one should be driving or walking on the roads.  This curfew is in effect until further notice.

If you have lost power please contact Northeast Utilities to report the outage at 1-800-286-2000 or you can go on-line to www.cl-p.com.

Due to the multiple road closures, the response of emergency services will be extremely limited.

For storm related, non-emergency questions, please call the Emergency Operations Center at 203-594-4100.  911 should be used for emergency calls only.

Following is a list of safety tips to help get through the next few days:

• Stay away from downed trees – live power lines may be involved.  Metal fences and guardrails may also become energized.
• Avoid using candles if you lose power.  If you must, never leave them unattended and keep them away from combustibles.
• If you have a portable generator, make sure it is outside and if you are back-feeding your home through an outlet, make sure that you turn off the main breaker to avoid back-feeding the street, thereby endangering workers trying to restore power.

It is expected that it will be several days before some roads are cleared and as long as a week before full power is restored.  Residents are requested to be patient and check on neighbors.

Following is a list where further information can be found:

Town website at www.newcanaan.info

Channel 79, the Town’s cable access channel

WICC 600 am

WNLK 1350 am

On facebook at www.newcanaanoem.com

Office of Emergency Management
Press Release Saturday, August 27, 2011, 7 pm
For Immediate Release
 
Selectman, Jeb Walker and the Office of Emergency Management have been working to prepare the town prior to hurricane Irene.  As of 3:30 pm today a formal state of emergency was declared by the Town.
 
This storm has the potential for severe damage including flooding and downed trees and wires. This will result in numerous road closures for an extended period of time.
 
Residents in areas previously subject to flooding should expect severe flooding from this storm and are strongly encouraged to evacuate at this time.
 
An emergency shelter has been established at the Lapham Community Center and is currently in use.  Residents planning to come to the shelter should bring pillows, blankets, toiletries and a week’s worth of medications, if any.  Pets may be brought to the center and they will be picked up by the Animal Control staff and taken to the Town’s shelter for safe keeping.  If bringing a pet, you should also bring a seven day supply of pet food.
 
Selectman Walker has announced that a representative from CL&P will be stationed at the New Canaan EOC (Emergency Operations Center) throughout the storm which will greatly facilitate recovery efforts.
 
It is anticipated that the New Canaan Police Department 911 center will be extremely busy during the storm and should only be called for emergency situations. A storm call center has been established for non-emergency related questions. The number is (203) 594-4100. 
 
Storm updates will be posted at the following locations:
 
Town website at www.newcanaan.info
Channel 79, the Town’s cable access channel
WICC 600 am
WNLK 1350 am
On facebook at www.newcanaanoem.com
 

The town of New Canaan was granted a request from the NJ/NY Port Authority for a piece of the World Trade Center. This 1400lb steel I-beam will be presented as a memorial somewhere in town. The town is still deciding the location. To see the artifact entering the Fire House go to: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oaNNHPCypqk&feature=channel_video_title

On March 25th, the members of New Canaan Fire celebrated their 129th anniversary (2010). There were close to 100 people in attendance at the dinner at Continental Manor in Norwalk.  One of the largest turn-outs in years, attended by not only current members, but also life members and guests from surrounding towns and NC.
In attendance was not only our very own, Selectman, Robert Mallozzi III; but also state Senator Toni Boucher. Members of the Town Council and miscellaneous other town departments were also there to cheer us on. We were also very pleased to host Firefighters from Darien, Wilton, Pound Ridge NY, Vista NY, Noroton, and Noroton Heights. 
Recipients of longevity awards included James Socci, who received a pin for being a member for 50 years. Also with time awards were Michael Karl who dedicated 30 years and Firefighters Joe DiIorio and Peter Theiss for 10 years.  
Recipients of firefighting awards were Captain Al DuPont who received the award for Outstanding Service.  The President’s Award for service and leadership (given by President Steve Parrett) was presented to Firefighter Larry Pitt and Fire Commissioner Jack Horner. Chief Edward Karl gave the Chief’s Award to Firefighter Paul Devan. Captain DuPont and Chief Karl gave Firefighters Paul Ainsworth and Nick Lipieka the Rookie of the Year award.
The evening was spent remembering 2010 and the events that made it memorable. From chimney fires, to 31₵ Scoop Night, to the October open house and summer parades. We would like to thank all who joined us to celebrate!

Santa made a special trip from the North Pole to New Canaan fire house on Sunday, December 12th. Over 15 children were in attendance for the member’s family only visit. A special thank you to elf - Jason Finnegan for arranging the visit with the North Pole icon!

New Canaan firefighters extinguished a barn fire at 64 Wakeman Rd on Saturday.  The barn which was fully involved with fire on the arrival of the first engine, was largely destroyed; firefighters were successful in keeping the fire from spreading to the adjacent house, which sustained serious heat damage.

Three cars were also destroyed by the radiated heat from the blaze.  The cause of the fire is under investigation by the Fire Marshal's office.

New Canaan's bravest fought an attic fire this morning at a residence on Wahackame Rd.   The alarm was sounded at 5:58AM when the residents woke to the smell of smoke in their house and found that there attic was on fire.

Firefighters quickly doused the flames and saved the structure, thanks in particular to the hard work of Mike Tiani and Duffy Sasser.

The cause of the fire is under investigation by the Fire Marshal's office.

Fire fighters joined many other groups on Monday to march in the annual Memorial Day Parade. Over 35 volunteer firemen marched followed by 10 career fire fighters and many family members in apparatus. Mount Kisco Pipe and Drums lead the fire fighters. After the ceremony at Lakeview cemetery, fire figters passed out over 500 hotdogs to hungry marchers and their families at the firehouse. Many thanks to all who helped!

New Canaan volunteer and career firefighters joined children and parents from the New Canaan Winter Club for a morning skate and hockey practice session, and were all suprised by the entrance of Santa - on skates!

Both the firefighters and Santa participated in the morning skating drills, and afterwards gave the kids a tour of one of the fire engines. 

If you have a group that would like to participate in a community relations event, please contact Assistant Chief Kimes at rkimes@newcanaanfire.com.

New Canaan Firefighters practice basic SCBA (Self Contained Breathing Apparatus) search. This drill took place at the Lapham Community Center in New Canaan, and gave our many new firefighters their first experience with searching in a completely dark environment.

A call of smoke from a structure came in around 0930 hours on St Johns Place. Firefighters could see smoke on Pine Street while heading to the scene. Assistant Chief Jack Hennessey confirmed structure fire. The structure was a detached 7 bay garage. The fire was located in an end bay. The flames had completely demolished the garage door before emergency services had arrived. No one was injured during the fire.

 
Firefighter Paul Wilson drove the first apparatus on scene, while Captain Rob Petrone completed the size up. Firefighter Kevin Vetti pulled the first line with assistance of Firefighter Mike Sasser. Lieutenant Don Gesualdi and Captain Eugene Tiani arrived on the second due apparatus and quickly went to work. Firefighter Dave DiPanni and Firefighter Mike Sasser vented the roof.
 
The main body of the fire was out within ten minutes and firefighters then opened the other bays to see the extension of the fire. The fire was contained to only the one, end bay.
 
Cause is still to be determined by Fire Marshal Fred Baker and the office of the State Fire Marshal.