BUSY MONTH OF JANUARY 2023 FOR THE WESTWOOD FIRE DEPARTMENT

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Fire Chief James Voorhis Sr. reports that the Westwood Fire Department was called 28 times for
emergency assistance during the month of January 2023. Chief Voorhis reports that none of the calls
turned out to be a serious fire in Westwood.
These 28 emergency calls six training sessions and one maintenance night required over 400 hours of
volunteer time.
The Westwood Fire Department responded to assist the Emerson fire department under the mutual aid
agreement on one occasion.
Automatic fire alarms were received ten times in January. Although no fires existed at any of these
incidents, a full fire department response is required. Firefighters check the entire building to determine
if an actual fire exists. No cause for the alarm activation was found at four of the calls. Workers in the
building caused one alarm. Cooking smoke caused one alarm. Detector or system malfunctions resulted
in three alarm activations.
The department responded seven times to natural gas emergencies. Each time a full department
response is required. Firefighters check the entire building with meters. At one incident an oven was
found to be malfunctioning, fire crews shut the stove. One incident was caused by a malfunctioning
furnace. No gas readings were found at three other incidents. As is standard procedure, gas incidents
are turned over to PSE&G gas company technicians for further investigation.
Two Carbon Monoxide (CO) incidents occurred in January. Readers are reminded that carbon monoxide,
CO, is an odorless and colorless gas given off by improperly burning heating or cooking equipment. It can
be fatal at high levels. Each of these CO calls required a full fire department response. Fire crews check
the buildings with meters to determine the cause. At one incident slight CO readings were detected, fire
crews vented the building with fans. At the other incident fire crews found no readings. All incidents of
this nature are turned over to PSE&G gas technicians for further investigation.
Other calls in the month were a grill fire that was out upon fire department arrival, a grass fire that was
quickly extinguished by fire crews and twice the fire department was called for citizens stuck in
elevators. At each of these elevator calls the occupants were out when the fire department arrived.

This article was submitted by the Westwood Fire Department. Any Fire Department related questions
can be e-mailed to Wwfdchief@westwoodnj.gov or by calling 201-664-0526. The fire prevention bureau
can be reached at wfpb191@usa.net or by calling 201-664-7100 ext 308. PLEASE NOTE; THIS PHONE
NUMBER IS A BUSINESS/NON-EMERGENCY PHONE NUMBER, NOT FOR FIRES OR EMERGENCIES.
FOR FIRE, POLICE, AMBULANCE EMERGENCIES CALL 911