Evan is responsible for the day-to-day operation of the Fire Prevention Office. He operates under the authority of the State of New Jersey Division of Fire Safety, the Department of Community Affairs, and the State of New Jersey Uniform Construction Code.
He supervises a staff of Fire Inspectors who inspect all multi-family, commercial, and industrial sites, as well as Public and Private schools and places of Assembly for compliance with State and Building Codes. He also conducts Fire Plan Reviews for new construction and renovations.
Raphael “Ralph” Maurrasse
Fire Inspector
One of the foremost methods to prevent a fire from occurring in your home is to install smoke detectors outside each separate sleeping area and on each floor of your home, including the basement.
Residents are reminded of the importance and value of having properly operating smoke detectors in your homes. A smoke detector may save your life!
If a fire occurs in your home, your chances of survival are two times better when smoke detectors are present. Smoke detectors should be placed on the ceiling because smoke and heat rise and then spread along the ceiling. A smoke detector should be installed in the immediate area of the bedrooms, at least one on each floor of the house, and on the ceiling above the bottom step of the stairway going upstairs from the basement. Keep smoke detectors away from air supply registers.
Smoke detectors should be tested every week. The face and grillwork of the detectors should be cleaned to remove dust, and grease and dust should be blown out through the grillwork. Batteries should be changed on a regular basis. As a reminder, change your batteries when you change your clocks.
Be prepared! Know at least two (2) ways out of your house. Parents with school age children are urged to consult with your children when planning exit drills in your home. Your children are learning "fire safety skills" in the local schools and you may learn from them. Remember, "A working smoke detector can be the best protection against fire" in your home.
Residents selling their homes are reminded that a Certificate of Compliance indicating smoke detector and carbon monoxide detector placement and operation is required before a home sale can be completed. This State-mandated safety requirement also applies to the owner of a house that is rented. The owner must obtain a Certificate of Compliance upon any change of tenancy.
Contact the Building Department at 201-664-1849 ext. 19 to arrange an inspection and obtain this certificate.
It is now required that New Jersey households install carbon monoxide (CO) alarms as protection against this invisible hazard. CO2 is a gas that is undetectable by human senses yet it can cause health problems, brain damage and even death. When concentrations of the gas build up, flu-like symptoms may develop, especially among younger and older individuals who are less tolerant of this poison. If your carbon monoxide alarm activates:
Carbon monoxide is a product of incomplete combustion. Carbon monoxide is invisible. There will be no smoke or haze to betray its presence. Carbon monoxide is odorless. Carbon monoxide is deadly. CO is the symbol for carbon monoxide.
The Old Tappan Fire Prevention Bureau would like to urge local residents to make their homes fire-safe by cleaning up any fire hazards. All the ingredients that start fires are common in your home: fuel, ignition sources, air, etc. Every year fire kills thousands of persons in their homes and damages or destroys half a million homes. You can prevent home fires if you know and follow basic fire safety rules and eliminate fire hazards as you go about your daily house cleaning chores.
The Old Tappan Fire Department responds to several dryer-related fires each year. Some of these fires occur when lint builds up in the filter or in the exhaust duct. Under certain conditions, when lint blocks the flow of air, excessive heat buildup may cause a fire in some dryers. To prevent clothes dryer-caused fires:
The Old Tappan Volunteer Fire Department requests residents living near a fire hydrant to "Adopt a Hydrant" and remove snow and ice from around a fire hydrant during the winter months. Any assistance in clearing snow from fire hydrants will be appreciated. With mandatory training and drills, the volunteer department does not have the time or personnel to clear snow from fire hydrants after a snow storm. Most fire hydrants are marked with a hydrant stake.
Although most kitchen appliances make life more convenient for you, the one that will provide you with some degree of assurance that your house won't burn down is a fire extinguisher.
If you're not sure a kitchen fire extinguisher is a necessity, consider that cooking is the largest single cause of home fires and statistics from the National Fire Protection association indicate that home fires and civilian deaths are both on the rise.
Portable fire extinguishers for the home, which can be purchased for under $20, fall into three general categories according to the kind of fires they fight. Air-pressured water extinguishers handle ordinary fires, such as burning wood, cloth, paper and many plastics while carbon dioxide and dry chemical extinguishers can be used on fires involving flammable liquids such as gasoline, oil and grease and to extinguish fires caused by energized electrical equipment including electric kitchen appliances. Read up on the extinguisher's features to determine the type that best suits your needs.
To use the fire extinguisher properly, follow the written instructions that come with the unit, aim low at the base of the fire, squeeze the handle and sweep the unit from side to side.
At under $20, a portable fire extinguisher will be one of your least expensive kitchen appliances. If one day it happens to save your home or your life, it will be the most important appliance you ever bought.
A large selection of candles is available in many types of stores today. The popularity of candles has increased enormously recently, but unfortunately, so has the number of fires associated with the burning of candles.
According to the National Fire Protection Association, candles caused 9,930 fires, 126 civilian deaths and $170.6 million in property damage across the nation in 1996, the most recent year for which candle-caused fire data is available. This represents an 82% increase over the same categories from the year 1990. Most of these candle-caused fires started when burning candles were left unattended.
The Old Tappan Fire Department offers the following advice for using candles safely:
Candles are enjoyable, calming, and fragrant, but don't ever forget that when you burn them, you are dealing with fire. Always take proper precautions to prevent your enjoyable experience from turning into a disaster.