| From the July 2020 SLFD Newsletter July in Salt Lake City is a time for fun holidays and creating memories with family and friends – precious things made even more so given the limitations COVID-19 precautions have placed upon us all over recent months. I expect that many will feel the desire to make the most of the July holidays. With this in mind, I’d like to ask everyone in Salt Lake City and surrounding communities to prioritize your personal safety along with that of your family, friends, and neighbors. Fireworks present a constant danger to our community. That danger is even higher this July as we experienced spring full of growth, feeding the fuel for a potential wildfire in SLC’s wildland-urban interface areas. As a reminder, the use of fireworks is prohibited in parts of SLC. If you choose to light fireworks in one of the allowable areas, I urge you to act safely. Keep the following guidance in mind: • Use common sense when using fireworks. Spectators should keep a safe distance from the fireworks. The person lighting the fireworks should wear safety glasses. • Use fireworks outdoors only. • Obey local laws. If fireworks are not legal where you live, do not use them! • Always have water handy (a hose or buckets of water). • Only use fireworks as intended. DO NOT try to alter them or combine them. • Never re-light a “dud” firework (wait 20 minutes and then soak it in a bucket of water). • Alcohol and fireworks do not mix! Have a “designated” person light fireworks. • Only persons over age 12 should be allowed to handle sparklers of any type. • DO NOT ever use homemade fireworks or illegal explosives; they can kill! Report illegal explosives to the police department in your community. • Parents are strongly encouraged to supervise their children while using fireworks. • Keep a bucket of water nearby to place spent fireworks in for at least 12 hours before discarding into a garbage can. More information about fireworks safety and restrictions here in Salt Lake City can be found at http://www.slcfire.com/fireworks. Using these and other safety tips this holiday season will ensure that your July is full of fun and memories, rather than the sad or tragic alternatives. Stay safe, Chief Karl Lieb 2020 Firework Restrictions The summer holidays are quickly approaching. As we anticipate Independence and Pioneer Day festivities, SLC Fire would like to encourage our community to learn about fireworks safety and restrictions within our community. As a reminder, the following fireworks restrictions are in place within Salt Lake City: · The use of personal fireworks is permissible July 2-5, 2020 to celebrate Independence Day and July 22-25, 2020 to celebrate Pioneer Day · Fireworks are not allowed in the following areas: East of 900 East; West of Redwood Road; North of South Temple Street; within any designated City Park space Visit the Utah State Fire Marshal’s website to learn more about how you can practice firework safety. COVID-19 Update SLC Fire’s daily operations continue to be impacted by COVID-19 and related concerns. After modifying several department policies and protocols in response to these concerns, we feel confident that the actions we have taken serve to keep our workforce and community members as safe as possible. A few items that we have changed over the past several weeks include: · SLC Fire employees wear surgical or cloth masks when in public for non-medical response reasons (such as trips to the grocery store). · All calls for medical assistance are treated as potential COVID-19 exposures and our firefighters wear the appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE). · Patients requesting emergency medical assistance may be asked to meet first responders outdoors or in a large room, whenever possible. · First responders may ask family members, friends, and bystanders to provide a safe distance (6 ft. or greater) from the responding crew members on any emergency scene · We are suspending SLC Fire’s participation in external activities, such as station tours, school visits, etc. · We are requesting firefighters who are ill to stay home and recuperate, waiting to return to work until they are medically cleared to do so. The Stay Safe, Stay Home order is challenging but we are grateful for the support of our SLC community now more than ever! Your actions to keep yourselves and your family safe help us to do our job to the best of our ability. Show us what you are doing to stay safe and healthy this season – share your #SLCSaferTogether photos on Facebook or Instagram and tag @SLCFire! SLC Fire Station Monthly Open Houses Currently Suspended With the presence of COVID-19 (Coronavirus) cases in Utah, SLC Fire is taking steps to ensure the safety of our community members and fire department employees. Our administration has determined that it is in the best interest of all involved to minimize the risk associated with unnecessary exposure. Therefore, we are suspending our SLCFD monthly Open House events for the time being. Rest assured that SLC Fire will continue to respond to any and all calls for emergency assistance. Our department is taking the necessary precautions to protect our firefighters so that they may continue serving the SLC community. If you are looking for what to do if you suspect infection or how to protect your own family and household from unnecessary exposure, we encourage you to visit www.coronavirus.utah.gov for the latest developments. SLC Fire’s partnerships within the community are important to us. The decision to cancel events is not one we make lightly, but one we feel is necessary toward ensuring the health and safety of fire department employees and the greater SLC community. Once the threat of COVID-19 has diminished, SLC Fire will resume our monthly Open House event schedule. Our website, www.slcfire.com/contact, will contain the latest information about event scheduling. Click here to see the full SLFD newsletter. |
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Thank you for continuing to communicate and share! It’s so important, so thank you. That said, I hope we continue to communicate to the city that enforcement of ordinances and laws remains one of the weakest aspects of Salt Lake City government. Whether noise ordinances, traffic laws, dumping on streets and corners, property mangagement, or fireworks prohibitions, the city seems unable even unwilling to enforce much of anything.
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Thank you Douglas! Let’s put this on an upcoming meeting’s agenda and tell the them!
Nice going Anna amd Kelly!