By BOB SHRALUKA
WZBD.com
It’s believed that 100% of the factories in Decatur have a Knox box, and there are over 100 of them installed citywide, Fire Chief Jeff Sheets told city council at its Tuesday night meeting.
The Knox boxes are placed securely on a structure and hold a key to provide access to the structure. Only the fire department has a key to unlock the box.
When firefighters respond to a fire, they can open the box and gain immediate access to the structure.
That eliminates damage done by forced entries and/or waiting for a property owner to arrive at the scene and provide access in the middle of the night, or at any time.
City Hall has a Knox box.
The matter of the Knox boxes came up at the council meeting when Sheets (right in photo, with city Fire Marshal Tony Lothridge) asked council to make some changes in the city’s fire prevention ordinance.
He said several “gaps” have been found in the ordinance, mainly relating to inspections, etc.
Sheets noted, too, that some businesses are slow to remedy small problems and the changes he is asking in the ordinance “will give us a bit more teeth.”
City Attorney Anne Razo said a public hearing is needed to pass amendments to an ordinance.
So the amendments were made and council passed them on first reading, then tabled the matter until the next meeting. At that time, a date and time for public hearing will be established.
