Fire caused by "bug collector" detected by smart smoke detector

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kwired

Electron manager
Location
NE Nebraska
The only thing I worry about is something like parents using it to "keep their their kids safe" when they come home from school with nobody home. Or maybe elderly parents.

-Hal
If those kids or elderly parents aren't capable of doing the right thing if a smoke alarm goes off, they shouldn't be home without someone present that does know what to do. If there is a fire they need to know they have to get out, if possible. waiting for fire dept to rescue them when they can get out is not the right action to take. Calling mom/dad to ask what to do isn't right action either. If they are old enough to be alone they need to know you get out of the house when it is on fire, then you call for help or go to neighbor's house or some other planned action for such emergency. Kids that aren't really old enough to be left home alone often still have this ability to know what to do.
 

Jon456

Senior Member
Location
Colorado
Yeah, and they are paying probably in excess of $250/mo just for cable service. Kinda makes that $15-30/mo seem trivial.
I'd bet that everyone who has monitored alarms also have broadband internet. So it's not like internet service is a mandatory additional cost for people with smart devices. Besides, who pays $250/mo for internet? I have high-speed broadband cable internet and I pay less than $60 per month; to me and my work, it's almost as necessary as power. If, for some reason, I decided to install and subscribe to alarm monitoring, guess what: I'd still be paying ~$60/mo for internet service.


And you calling 911 to report what turns out to be a false alarm isn't the same thing?
In my post you were replying to, I mentioned internet-connected security cameras. If a person received a remote alert from a smart smoke detector, he could then check his security cameras for signs of smoke or fire. Or, as Kwired mentioned, he could call a neighbor.


Then how about being miles away from your home and having to explain to the 911 operator just where your house is.
Where I live we have this thing called a street address. You may have heard about them. :cool:
 

hbiss

EC, Westchester, New York NEC: 2014
Location
Hawthorne, New York NEC: 2014
Occupation
EC
In my post you were replying to, I mentioned internet-connected security cameras. If a person received a remote alert from a smart smoke detector, he could then check his security cameras for signs of smoke or fire. Or, as Kwired mentioned, he could call a neighbor.

Neighbor: "Oh yeah, I can see the flames from here. You should call the fire department".

Where I live we have this thing called a street address. You may have heard about them. :cool:

Obviously you have never called 911 from your cell. From a land line at your house you don't even have to say anything and they know where you are. That's how 911 is supposed to work. Call from your cell and you can have fire trucks showing up at your blanket on the beach or at the address you gave only in another state.

-Hal
 

Muneepit

Muneepit
Location
Houston
Occupation
Electrician
Not sure how a AFCI would have prevented this fire. According to the article, the sun was shining through a plastic lens, ( like a magnifying glass) causing the fire.
 

tom baker

First Chief Moderator
Staff member
If the homeowner did not have the security cameras it may of been classed as an electrical fire, which AFCIs are supposed to prevent.
That AFCI post was in jest.
 

Jon456

Senior Member
Location
Colorado
Obviously you have never called 911 from your cell. From a land line at your house you don't even have to say anything and they know where you are. That's how 911 is supposed to work. Call from your cell and you can have fire trucks showing up at your blanket on the beach or at the address you gave only in another state.
It's bad to make assumptions. Even worse when you make assumptions based on false constructs.

Yes, I have called 911. From a landline, it's automatically routed to the local police and fire dispatch. From a mobile phone, it's automatically routed to the Highway Patrol or State Police dispatch. It doesn't matter where you call from, they won't automatically send fire trucks anywhere since they don't even know the nature of your emergency when you call. You have to TALK to the dispatch first to tell them what the emergency is and where the emergency is. Only in rare cases where you are incapacitated or otherwise unable to speak will they send police and possibly EMT to your location *if* they can determine your location which is not always possible from a cell phone call.

In any case, you call 911 and you tell them the nature and location of the emergency, even if you are in another city or another state. Tell them the full address and they will figure out how to contact the appropriate agency in the jurisdiction of that address. It's really not that hard.

A smarter person will save their local police and fire department phone numbers in their cell phone contacts. Just like we used to write them down in our little paper address books in the days before cell phones or 911.
 

kwired

Electron manager
Location
NE Nebraska
Obviously you have never called 911 from your cell. From a land line at your house you don't even have to say anything and they know where you are. That's how 911 is supposed to work. Call from your cell and you can have fire trucks showing up at your blanket on the beach or at the address you gave only in another state.

-Hal
A agree with Jon456

It's bad to make assumptions. Even worse when you make assumptions based on false constructs.

Yes, I have called 911. From a landline, it's automatically routed to the local police and fire dispatch. From a mobile phone, it's automatically routed to the Highway Patrol or State Police dispatch. It doesn't matter where you call from, they won't automatically send fire trucks anywhere since they don't even know the nature of your emergency when you call. You have to TALK to the dispatch first to tell them what the emergency is and where the emergency is. Only in rare cases where you are incapacitated or otherwise unable to speak will they send police and possibly EMT to your location *if* they can determine your location which is not always possible from a cell phone call.

In any case, you call 911 and you tell them the nature and location of the emergency, even if you are in another city or another state. Tell them the full address and they will figure out how to contact the appropriate agency in the jurisdiction of that address. It's really not that hard.

A smarter person will save their local police and fire department phone numbers in their cell phone contacts. Just like we used to write them down in our little paper address books in the days before cell phones or 911.
Those local numbers often were and still are somewhat easy to remember numbers, like area code + local prefix followed by 1234 or 2222. Just had to know what it is where you are at, work and home might have different numbers for some - 911 just made it universal number to call, now with cell phones and probably even many internet phone services, even if you don't get a local dispatcher you are going to reach someone that will help you
 

ggunn

PE (Electrical), NABCEP certified
Location
Austin, TX, USA
Occupation
Electrical Engineer - Photovoltaic Systems
Only in rare cases where you are incapacitated or otherwise unable to speak will they send police and possibly EMT to your location *if* they can determine your location which is not always possible from a cell phone call.
In a related story...

A woman living in a rural area near here who had an illegal cash crop growing in her back yard accidentally called 911 when she meant to call 411. When the 911 operator answered she hung up immediately. The operator tried a couple of times to call the woman, but both times the woman hung up when the operator identified herself. Police and EMS were dispatched.

Busted.
 

Jon456

Senior Member
Location
Colorado
In a related story...

A woman living in a rural area near here who had an illegal cash crop growing in her back yard accidentally called 911 when she meant to call 411. When the 911 operator answered she hung up immediately. The operator tried a couple of times to call the woman, but both times the woman hung up when the operator identified herself. Police and EMS were dispatched.

Busted.
Hahaha. Criminals are not the brightest bunch.

I recently read a news story where a man was physically beating/abusing his girlfriend. At one point, he demanded to know if she had called 911. The Amazon Alexa in the room heard him and thought he had asked it to call 911, so that's what it did. Police arrived and arrested the man.

Damn those "techi toys."
 

hbiss

EC, Westchester, New York NEC: 2014
Location
Hawthorne, New York NEC: 2014
Occupation
EC
Hahaha. Criminals are not the brightest bunch.

I recently read a news story where a man was physically beating/abusing his girlfriend. At one point, he demanded to know if she had called 911. The Amazon Alexa in the room heard him and thought he had asked it to call 911, so that's what it did. Police arrived and arrested the man.

Damn those "techi toys."

Would have been worse for him if Alexa had texted the girl's husband. :roll:

-Hal
 
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