Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1924-09-25
Fire Chief Dunn I
Urges Observance
Fire Prevention Week

VI SCO OU0Cl tQ11CC
Fire Prevention Week
Fire Prevention Week this year
will be from October sill. and in the
opinion of Chief Roscoe c. Dunn of
the local fire department this is an
Opportune time for preparation.
Every week should be Fire Proven
ton Week and the chief asks that we
be especially careful at this time OF
year, and suggests that chimneys be
cleaned out before the furnace fires
are started for the winter months.
In his communication given below
the chief has covered the situation
carefully, and the citizens of Gardi-
ner should show their appreciation
for his services in the past and as
sist him in the work Of fire preven-
ton as we'll as in fire fighting.
"One fundamentally serious loss
! resulting from every fire is that rep
resented by the wasted raw materials.
many of which, for rebuilding, must
he drawn from already slender, or at
least steadily diminishing, natural
resources within our boundaries.
Take lumber. Despite the increasing
use of incombustible material in
structural work. wood, as everyone
hIOWS, IClIldAuS III ACdNy duu COh
stand demand. Every fire therefore,
which consumes wood in some form
necessitates the making of fresh in
roads into our timber supply. Hence
iE very real sense, the fire alarm is
echoed in the ring of the woodlands
axe-in which assertion, alas, there
ia a deal more of solemn truth than
Of fancy.
However, there are others ways
still in which the burden of q mon
strCus fire loss falls upon us indi-
vidually. 1t enters into the cost of
every purchase we make, however
trivial. since the expense of insur-
ance protection is Incorporated, by
common practice. along with other
items of overhead" in the price set
by the seller upon his commodity or
service. And as insurance rates are
Invariably an index to a community :
fire loss ratio. it follows that the
MUM that the public, both directly
for its own insuranceLand indirect
ly-through its commodity purchas-
cs-must pay. So we see that by in
creasing measurably the cost of liv-
ing the fire waste is a burden which
rests squarely upon our shoulders
upon yours and mine.
Again, it must not be forgotten that
when industrial plants are attacked
by fire, hundreds, sometimes thou
sands. OF men without a moments
warning are thrown out of work.
Sudden unemployment on such a
SCALE inevitably disturbs the whole
community in a number of unpleas-
ant ways, not the least of which Is
the reduction of its purchasing pow
Of 1nvrynrfner ~ tho
standards of living for a part of its
inhabitants. Nor is this a misfor-
tune which occurs at long intervals.
Seldom does a day pass without be-
ing marked by one such fire with its
far-reaching consequences. Often
many are recorded in q single "a
hour period.
Now consider this: Destroyed
buildings pay no taxes-that Is an
established principle in city govern
ment everywhere. From the date of
its destruction property Is removed
automatically from the assessment
rolls and only replaced when restora :
ton has been completed. Yet this
anticipated revenue for the commun-
ity budget requirements cannot be
dispensed with; it must come from
some source, and so It Is added to the
taxes of those whose property re-
mains standing.
I Furthermore. let US not overlook
the expense of public fire protection.
To maintain a municipality paid fire
department together with an efficient
alarm system. requires money, much
money. To protect from the ravages
of fire the city of greater New York
alone, its residents pay annually
some six millions of dollars. Lesser,
but still considerable sums are ap-
propriated by hundreds of cities in
the United States year after year.
DO not misunderstood me. Collect
lively our fire departments constitute
our standing army prepared to re-
sist the incuhsions of the Red enemy.
l am as far as possible from urging
retrenchment by so much as a dollar
from these expenditures. Truly there
Is no single public outlay more vitality
necessary and no one division of city
government wherin attempted econ !.
omies are more certain to result dis
astrously. I merely wish to point
cut that in footing up the ultimate
cost of one gigantic fire loss, this
item for protection must be reckoned.
1t Is perhaps. reasonable at this
juncture to ask ourselves II there are
in operation any laws, either natural
or enonomic, which tend to make
this paying out of life and property
uncomfortable. Is 1t. we may won
der. the price that must be paid for
our continued national orowth and
development. So far as the financial
loss Is concerned, inflated property
values have. Of course, played a part
in raising the toll in recent years:
likewise, the congestion of popula-
ton in a comparatively small num-
her OF cities has had hand in It.
1t viii require both individual and
collective effort. Individually, we
can make a start by developing in
ourselves q fire. consciousness; we
can make carefulness with fire not
only a habit but an instinct. First,
Trough, we should learn to Identify
and to remove or correct those con-
ditions In our premises. home or
husiness-which breed fire, palpably
dangerous conditions such as the
rubbish heap, the carelessly disposed
match or cigarette the electric