About 50 Moravian House residents listened to a presentation by Bethlehem firefighters from Engine No. 6 on March 20 at the Old York Road Senior Center. Lt. Josh Anders and firefighters Imboden, Navitsky, Sicurello and Miller spent an hour with residents discussing a variety of issues before being pulled away from the event when an emergency call came in and they had to leave.

“On a fire alarm you’ll get the five of us and another engine initially, so we need the residents to help us when we respond,” says Anders.

Anders explained that everybody must treat any alarm as if it’s a real fire and asked the residents if they knew where to go when the alarm goes off. “Leave your unit and get to a stairwell,” he told them, “but if your path is blocked shelter in place.”

In the event of a cooking mishap residents were told to not vent smoke into hallways and instead keep it localized within the unit.

The firefighters stressed that residents should move into stairwells because of their protective fire resistant design, and not use elevators for evacuation. “If you are able to go down the stairs, do so,” says Imbolden. As firefighters respond they need the elevators to move themselves and equipment to a floor one or two below the source of fire in order to form a plan for evacuating residents and attacking the fire.

Residents were advised to use cellphones or landlines to call their room locations into 9-1-1, and to open a window and wave something out the window or use a flashlight so rescuers can determine their locations. That information is relayed to the scene by the 9-1-1 communications center.

“We don’t want any tenants to be in jeopardy,” says Imboden.

Residents were advised to leave pets behind as the firefighters number one objective is to get humans to safety. Anders says the animals are pretty resilient and often find small safe spaces where they are able to survive.

One resident questioned the use of fire blankets on a small kitchen fire and was advised by Anders to make sure that the flames are completely covered and to leave it in place until a firefighter can remove it safely. Tenants were advised to not store things in their ovens.

It was suggested that residents with hearing impairments and/or mobility issues coordinate with their neighbors in the event an alarm goes off, especially at nighttime when people are sleeping, and to move safely into the stairwells where fire doors must be closed completely. “Let your visitors also know the procedures,” the residents were told.

Residents were reminded that wet towels placed at the bottom of doors can also block smoke.

Although tenants at Moravian House are not permitted to use space heaters, Anders noted that extension cords should never be used to plug them in.

As Anders finished explaining the roles that both police and EMS perform at the scene an emergency call came in and the five fire personnel left to respond.