Somers fire chief urges residents to call 911 instead of firehouse for emergencies

The Somers fire chief is urging people in town to stop calling the firehouse and instead call 911 for emergency services.

Fire Chief David Lenart says the calls have been frequent, dozens over the past year from neighbors asking for firefighters to respond.

Chief Lenart says it’s a practice that’s unacceptable and urged people to call 911. He’s worried about potentially dangerous consequences.

He says by calling 911, dispatchers are able to pinpoint where the call is coming from and notify firefighters quickly. The fire chief says people calling the firehouse delays the response as they would have to call 911 dispatchers themselves in order to be able to respond to emergencies costing precious seconds and minutes.

“It's best to let us determine the size of the emergency and not you. You could never send too many fire trucks, right? I've never heard anyone complain that too many fire trucks came to my house when I thought it was on fire,” Chief Lenart said.

Chief Lenart says as long as people are calling 911 in good faith, there won’t be any repercussions for people making the call.