False Alarm

At about 5:30 today, I was working at the computer, Steph was at a friend's house, Pete and Julie were at Hebrew school, and Andy had just left to meet some friends downtown for dinner. Suddenly I heard a really loud alarm—coming from our own house! We have a burglar alarm, but it doesn't make that kind of sound, and in any event it wasn't armed. I went to the electronic keypad and turned it off. Then I called Andy to ask if he knew what it was (he didn't).

Then my cell phone rang. It was the security company saying that our fire alarm had gone off, that they had tried to call our home number twice but didn't get an answer, so they called the fire department! I said that there wasn't a fire, but the next thing I knew, two fire trucks pulled up at the house and a whole bunch of firefighters came to the door. I told them that there wasn't a fire, and they asked if I'd checked every floor. Just before, when I was on the phone with the security company person, I had run down to the basement to check the furnace, so this time I ran up to the third floor and looked around, even peeking briefly into the attic. Nothing smelled like it was burning, none of the smoke alarms had gone off, the walls weren't hot, nothing. So I thanked the firefighters for coming and sent them on their way.

Andy, meanwhile, had turned around to come home (it took him a minute to realize that the fire trucks he'd pulled over for were headed for our house!). He too looked all around the house but couldn't find anything even remotely hot or smoldery. So back out he went.

Meanwhile, I couldn't figure out how I could've possibly missed two phone calls, and there was no evidence of either call on my caller ID. I called the security company back and was told that both calls had gone straight to voice mail, and then the alarm "kicks in" to the phone line (or something like that), so it never showed up on the caller ID (I don't really get that, but she read off the number she'd called, and it was mine). I guess the calls must have come while I was talking to Andy, and maybe I didn't hear the call-waiting beep because I was dialing or something. Or maybe that's what she meant—maybe it doesn't even go to call waiting when it's an alarm? No idea, but very weird.

I'm also wondering what would have happened if I hadn't been home! Would the firefighters have axed the door down? What do they do if they get a fire alarm call but the house doesn't look like it's on fire? Anyone know? I'm also thinking that I'd better give the kids some instructions in case this ever happens when they're here alone, because man, did it ever shake me up!

Comments

[Q&B]

If no one is home, firefighters will knock down the door and go in and call the police. The police will then hang out and try to contact the home owner or until the house can be secured. This happened to our neighbor in Newton who lived in the same apartment building.

[Pat]

You might want to schedule a cleaning of the smoke alarm that is directly linked to the security company. Ours, an ADT unit, is larger than a normal smoke alarm, and hard wired to the ceiling. It's at the bottom of the stairs to the 2nd floor, and despite its distance from the kitchen, over the years every time it got a little dirty (literally, just with accumulated dust), and we'd cook anything even the tiniest bit smoky, it would go off. (The kicker was one New Year's Eve party when the fire in our fireplace set it off, and the fire trucks came. We felt awful.) Finally, a helpful ADT person suggested it could just be dirty and sending "wrong" signals--which may be the case with yours (since you weren't cooking at the time, I presume?) You might want to give them a call back and see if this might be a reason for your false alarm.

[Steve]

I know little about such things except to suggest a faulty or dirty detector (especially in the kitchen) or a radon or other "gas" type of detector that may be part of the system.

My other thoughts are: 1) You clearly keep a calm head in an emergency and I want you on my team if something happens (like a Zombie breakout) 2) Andy is a good dad and husband for immediately returning. 3) I don't understand what folks do who have eradicated their home "land" line and now rely exclusively on an IP/Internet phone and cell phones. Do they have no home alarm?

[Sandy]

I echo the comments about cleaning. We had a brief spell last year of our house fire alarm(s) going off inexplicably. We cleaned and/or replaced the one we think triggered it. Never had a problem again.