Ohio Township Fire Department

09/03/2026

🔥 FIREFIGHTER MYTH vs. FACT 🔥

🛗 “Can You Use an Elevator During a Fire?”

MYTH:
“If there’s a fire, taking the elevator is the fastest way out.”

FACT:
🚫 In most buildings, you should NOT use an elevator during a fire. Use the stairs unless firefighters or the building’s emergency system specifically tell you otherwise.
It may seem like an elevator would get you outside faster—especially if you're several floors up—but a fire can make normal elevator operation unpredictable and dangerous.

🛗 WHY CAN ELEVATORS BE DANGEROUS DURING A FIRE?

🔥 The elevator could take you toward the fire.
Fire alarm systems can cause elevators to automatically recall to a designated floor. Elevators may also be taken out of normal passenger service so firefighters can control them.

💨 Smoke and heat can enter the elevator shaft.
An elevator hoistway can provide a path for smoke and heat to travel between floors. Opening elevator doors onto a fire-affected floor could expose occupants to dangerous conditions.

💧 Firefighting operations can affect the elevator.
Heat, smoke and water can damage elevator components or interfere with operation.

⚡ You could become trapped.
A malfunction or loss of electrical service could leave occupants trapped inside an elevator during the emergency.

🚒 Firefighters may need the elevators.
Certain elevators have special Firefighter Service Mode that allows trained firefighters to control them for emergency operations. Even firefighters follow specific safety procedures before deciding whether an elevator is safe to use.

⚠️ ARE THERE EXCEPTIONS?
Yes. Some newer buildings have specially designed Occupant Evacuation Elevators intended for use during certain emergencies.

The important difference is that these elevators have special protections and operating requirements.

➡️ Unless the building's emergency instructions or firefighters tell you that an elevator is safe to use, use the stairs.

🆘 WHAT IF YOU CAN'T GET OUT?

If fire, heat or smoke prevents you from reaching a safe exit:
📞 Call 911. Tell the dispatcher exactly where you are—building, floor, room or apartment number—and that you cannot evacuate.
🚪 Close the door between you and the fire. A closed door can help slow the movement of smoke, heat and fire.
🧱 Stay in a protected location. If you're unable to use the stairs because of a disability or mobility limitation, follow the building's emergency plan. Depending on the building, this may include waiting in a designated area of refuge or a protected stair landing.
🪟 Make your location known. If you're trapped in a room with an exterior window, signal firefighters with a light-colored cloth or flashlight.
⬇️ Stay low if smoke enters the room. Cleaner air may be closer to the floor.
📱 Stay in communication with 911. Follow the dispatcher's instructions and tell them immediately if conditions change.

🚨 REMEMBER:
STAIRS = Your normal way out during a fire.
ELEVATORS = Don't use them unless specifically directed to do so.

And once you're safely outside: GET OUT. STAY OUT. CALL 911.

Knowing what to do before the alarm sounds can make all the difference.



Sources:
• U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) — High-Rise Fire Safety
• U.S. Fire Administration — Home Fire Escape Plans
• National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) — Emergency Evacuation & Elevator Guidance
• American Red Cross — What to Do if a Fire Starts

09/03/2026

World First Aid Day hosted by the Warrick County Health Department

Would you know what to do if someone’s life depended on you before first responders arrived?

Come learn skills that could make all the difference at Warrick County's World First Aid Day Event!

Join us for FREE, hands-on learning, including:
❤️ Hands-Only CPR
💊 Narcan Administration
🐾 Animal First Aid
🩹 And other important first aid and emergency skills!

And we’re making it fun for the whole family! We’ll also have food trucks, emergency vehicles, a bounce house, and more!

📅 September 12 | 9 AM–1 PM
📍 The Phoenix Event Center, 3433 Libbert Rd. Newburgh, IN

You don’t have to be a first responder to save a life. Come learn what to do BEFORE the emergency happens.

Bring the family, grab some food, meet your local first responders, and leave with skills that could someday save a life!

09/02/2026

🚒 WHY DO FIRE TRUCKS SOMETIMES BLOCK MULTIPLE LANES?

If you've ever driven past a crash or roadway emergency and wondered, “Why are they blocking TWO or even THREE lanes when the accident is only in one lane?” — there is an important reason.

It isn't to make traffic more difficult. It's to create a safety zone.

When firefighters, EMS, law enforcement, and other responders arrive at a roadway incident, they are working in an extremely dangerous environment. Traffic is still moving, visibility may be limited, and responders may be walking around vehicles, treating patients, removing people from wreckage, or dealing with fire, fuel, debris, or other hazards.

🚒 Emergency vehicles can be positioned strategically to:
• Create a protective barrier between responders and moving traffic
• Give firefighters and EMS room to work safely
• Protect patients being treated or removed from vehicles
• Provide a safe path for additional emergency vehicles and equipment
• Prevent motorists from driving through the work area
• Reduce the possibility of a secondary crash involving responders or other motorists
• Allow crews to work without constantly worrying about traffic coming within inches of them

The Federal Highway Administration's Traffic Incident Management guidance recognizes that emergency vehicles may need to block additional lanes to protect responders and victims. Lane closures should be adjusted as conditions change, and responders should reopen lanes as soon as it is safe to do so.

🚨 THAT FIRE TRUCK MAY BE YOUR SAFETY BARRIER

That fire engine sitting diagonally across the roadway isn't necessarily blocking traffic because the fire is there.

It may be positioned upstream from the actual crash specifically to protect everyone working downstream.

Think of the apparatus as a shield between firefighters and an inattentive, distracted, or out-of-control driver.

👀 WHAT SHOULD YOU DO?

When you see emergency vehicles, cones, flares, or personnel on or near the roadway:

SLOW DOWN.
MOVE OVER WHEN YOU CAN SAFELY DO SO.
FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS OF RESPONDERS.
EXPECT THE UNEXPECTED.

Indiana's Move Over law requires drivers approaching emergency vehicles displaying flashing lights to change lanes away from the emergency vehicle when possible. If you cannot safely move over, you must reduce your speed by at least 10 mph below the posted speed limit and proceed with caution.

And remember — the emergency isn't always where the emergency vehicle is parked.

There may be firefighters, police officers, EMS personnel, crash victims, tow operators, or other hazards several yards beyond that apparatus.

Those extra lanes may be the difference between responders going home safely — or becoming part of the incident.

🚒 Give us room to do our job. Slow down. Move over. Stay alert.



Sources:
Federal Highway Administration — Traffic Incident Management
Indiana Department of Transportation — Move Over or Slow Down
Indiana Bureau of Motor Vehicles — Indiana Driver's Manual

09/02/2026

09/01/2026

A message from Chandler Water

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/194PmaDR9K/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Chandler Utilities — Precautionary Boil Water Advisory

Please see attached for location information

09/01/2026

In this month's edition of Doc Talk, Dr. Kahre answers the question of: "What are the Signs of a Stroke?"

Stroke symptoms include symptoms of arm or leg weakness, numbness or tingling, or facial drooping on one side of your body. Speech difficulties can also occur including not being able to speak, slurring of your speech, or difficulty finding the correct word to say. Strokes that occur in the back prior to your brain will generally have symptoms of vertigo or feeling off balance, difficulty walking or running into the walls because you are unable to balance and occasionally nausea or vomiting. Strokes can also affect parts of your vision. Where part of your visual field is black and you are unable to see anything. The majority of the time people suffering from strokes actually do not have a headache.

08/31/2026

🚪🔥 WHY FIRE DOORS SHOULD NEVER BE PROPPED OPEN

A doorstop may seem harmless. A trash can, chair, wedge, or even a piece of equipment holding a door open may seem like a convenience.

But if that door is a required fire door, you may have just defeated an important part of the building's fire protection system.

🔥 WHAT DOES A FIRE DOOR DO?
A fire door is designed to be part of a fire-rated assembly. When closed, it helps compartmentalize a building by limiting the movement of fire, heat and smoke.

That can give occupants additional time to escape—and give firefighters a safer environment in which to search for victims and attack the fire.

The 2014 Indiana Fire Code (675 IAC 22-2.5) is currently in effect in Indiana. Section 703.2 specifically states: “Fire doors and smoke barrier doors shall not be blocked or obstructed, or otherwise made inoperable.”

📍 WHERE ARE FIRE DOORS FOUND?

Depending on the building's construction, occupancy and required fire protection, fire doors can be found in places such as:
• Exit stairways and exit enclosures
• Fire-rated corridors
• Shaft enclosures
• Smoke barriers
• Fire-rated walls and partitions
• Doors protecting certain hazardous or higher-risk rooms
• Other openings in fire-resistance-rated assemblies

The Indiana Fire Code requires openings through fire-resistance-rated assemblies to be protected by approved self-closing or automatic-closing doors meeting the required fire-protection rating.

💨 SMOKE IS THE DANGER
When a fire door is propped open, smoke can move through an opening that was specifically designed to be protected. And smoke doesn't have to wait for flames.

In a 1993 apartment fire in Los Angeles that killed 10 people, investigators reported that propped-open fire doors allowed heavy smoke to spread rapidly through the building. Most of the victims died from smoke inhalation.

In the 1988 First Interstate Bank fire in Los Angeles, a fire door on the 12th floor had reportedly been propped open with bags of trash. Fire officials said the door was designed to protect the elevator vestibule and that closing it might have changed the outcome for an engineer who died in the fire.

These aren't just code violations on an inspection report. They can have life-or-death consequences.

👨‍🚒 WHAT ABOUT FIREFIGHTERS?
When firefighters enter a burning building, we rely on the building's passive fire protection to do what it was designed to do.

A closed fire door can help:
🔥 Slow the spread of fire
💨 Limit smoke movement
🧑‍🚒 Protect stairways and other critical areas
🔎 Give firefighters a better chance to locate occupants
⏱️ Buy valuable time during search and rescue

When doors are wedged open, firefighters may encounter fire and smoke conditions farther from the original fire than expected. That can change the conditions we encounter and make the job more dangerous.

🚨 ONE MORE IMPORTANT POINT
Do not modify a fire door or its closing hardware.
Don't remove the closer.
Don't disconnect it.
Don't wedge it open.
Don't tie it back.
Don't place an object underneath it.

If a required fire door is difficult to open, won't close, won't latch, or the closer isn't working properly: Report the problem to building management or maintenance. Don't defeat the door just because it is inconvenient.

🔥 THE BOTTOM LINE
Fire doors aren't supposed to make your life more convenient. They're supposed to protect your life when something goes wrong.

The next time you see a fire door being propped open, remember: That door may be only thing standing between you and a hallway full of smoke and fire. Let the door do its job!

f you have questions about fire code requirements or would like assistance identifying hazards in your facility, contact the Ohio Township Fire Department Inspection Division at 812-858-4213 or www.ohiotownshipfire.org/contact/

08/31/2026

On Saturday a few of our members were able to join Young Life for a fall kick off event. Thank you for the invite and hope everyone had a fun evening!

08/31/2026

From the National Weather Service - Paducah

Actual temperatures will warm to the upper 90s to around 100 degrees for much of the week with heat index values approaching or possibly exceeding 105 degrees. It won't be quite as humid as the previous heat wave, but the heat is still dangerous, especially for the vulnerable and those working outdoors. Overnight lows will only drop into the mid to upper 70s, bringing little overnight relief. In fact, many of the warmest overnight low temperature records could be broken across the area this week.

Please be careful this week if you have to be out in the heat. Use caution if you work outside and take frequent breaks. Remember to call 911 if you believe someone or yourself, become overheated.

08/29/2026

Recently, this group of kids hosted a lemonade stand as a way to raise money to donate to the fire department. We can't say thank you enough for your hard work and support of our mission!