Members of the Gamber & Community Fire Company and the American Red Cross canvassed a local neighborhood on Sunday, April 30, 2017 during a smoke alarm installation program. The focus area was Wilda Drive in Westminster which is located just off Route 32. Fire Company and Red Cross members offered free smoke and carbon monoxide alarm inspections and installations where necessary.

The alarms were purchased with funds obtained from a grant through Firehouse Subs that was awarded almost two years ago. Gamber was awarded $3548.00 to purchase 200 i9010-10 year sealed lithium battery operated smoke alarms from Kidde. Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation is dedicated to impacting the life-saving capabilities and the lives of local heroes and their communities. This addition of smoke alarms makes it possible to continue our smoke alarm installation program within the Gamber community. Some fire company funds were also used to purchase hard-wired replacement smoke alarms.

On Saturday seven members of the department approached 78 homes from 9am until noon. The detail was organized by EMS Lt. and Fire Prevention Chair Bridget Weishaar. We had 42 homes with no answer, 14 homes that declined our services, and 6 homes with current working alarms, and 2 vacant homes. We entered 9 homes and installed a total of 15 10 year smoke alarms and 9 hardwired alarms. We have 2 houses that we need to follow up with to schedule installs for hardwired alarms

Our next date is May 13 from 10 am until 1pm for the Rainbow Drive community in Westminster, also just off of Route 32.

Helping in today's canvas were William and May Reardon, Clay Myers, Tim Brown, Rose Pandolfini, G. J. Bell, as well as four volunteers from the American Red Cross.