Fire alarm system

A fire alarm system is number of devices working together to detect and warn people through visual and audio appliances when smoke, fire, carbon monoxide or other emergencies are present. These alarms may be activated from smoke detectors, and heat detectors. Alarms can be either motorised bells or wall mountable sounders or horns. They can also be speaker strobes which sound an alarm, followed by a voice evacuation message which usually state in the lines of "Attention, Attention. A fire emergency has been reported. Please leave the building via the nearest exit. DO NOT use elevators!" They may also be activated via Manual fire alarm activation devices such as manual call points or pull stations. Fire alarm sounders can be set to certain frequencies and different tones including low, medium and high depending on the country and manufacturer of the device. Most fire alarm systems in Europe sound like a siren with alternating frequencies. Fire alarm sounders in the United States can be either continuous or set to different codes such as Code 3. Fire alarm warning devices can also be set to different volume levels. Smaller buildings may have the alarm set to a lower volume and larger buildings may have alarms set to a higher level.

Alarm signal

In the field of animal communication, an alarm signal is an antipredator adaptation referring to various signals emitted by social animals in response to danger. Many primates and birds have elaborate alarm calls for warning conspecifics of approaching predators. For example, the characteristic alarm call of the blackbird is a familiar sound in many gardens. Other animals, like fish and insects, may use other non-auditory signals, such as chemical messages. While visual signs have been suggested as alarm signals, they are easier to pinpoint by predators and less likely to be received by conspecifics, so have tended to be treated as a signal to the predator instead. An animal who signals an alarm is called an alarmer.

Different calls may be used for predators on the ground or from the air. Often, the animals can tell which member of the group is making the call, so that they can disregard those of little reliability.

Evidently, alarm signals promote survival by allowing the receivers of the alarm to escape from the source of peril, but this ecological safety system may come at a cost to the signaller. When an animal calls attention to itself by signalling, it may be more likely to be eaten by a predator than if it had kept quiet. This intuition has been verified by experimental data on ground squirrel predation rates and the connection between this and the noisy chirping or whistling alarm calls. However, there is also some evidence that alarm calls can increase individual fitness as well.

Podcasts:

PLAYLIST TIME:

Fire Alarm

by: Anneli Drecker

I've been ignoring you
Oh, why
Looking the other way as you pass me by
I've been exploring truth
Sometime
Finding out what went wrong
Why you made me cry
But if this fire alarm should start
I'm gonna run to you
We'll find the exit, climb the stairs
Into the sky so blue
And if this building now should fall
I will be crushed with you
It's just a reflex after all
But I wanna be with you
I've been ignoring you
Oh, why
Looking the other way as you pass me by
I've been avoiding you
Oh why everything's amber-lit
Since we said goodbye
But if this fire alarm should start
I'm gonna run to you
We'll find the exit, climb the stairs
Into the sky so blue
And if this building now should fall
I will be crushed next to you
In case you should forget to ask
I'm still in love with you




Latest News for: fire alarm calls

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Brainerd firefighters respond to calls

Brainerd Dispatch 11 Mar 2025
BRAINERD — The Brainerd Fire Department had a busy weekend with a host of calls ... On Saturday, the fire department crews were called at 11.10 a.m ... At 10.46 p.m., they were called to an alarm at Prince of Peace Lutheran Church.
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Ammonia leak at New Chapter

Brattleboro Reformer 10 Mar 2025
BRATTLEBORO — On Monday, the Brattleboro Fire Department responded to a call at 06.30 a.m to 90 Technology Drive for an alarm activation. The first arriving units reported an active ammonia leak of 273 parts per million in the building, ....
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Facebook Co-Founder Takes Swipe at Elon Musk in Angsty Substack

The Daily Beast 10 Mar 2025
Chris Hughes, a co-founder of Facebook, has called out Elon Musk for his government firing spree and sounded the alarm ...
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‘Ceasefire’ is a hollow word for Palestinians – the killings, displacements and denial of aid ...

The Guardian 10 Mar 2025
It has been just over six weeks since a ceasefire came into effect in Gaza, and it’s clear that it would more accurately be called a “reduce” fire, rather than a cessation ... alarming and newsworthy.
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$9.9 million airport project in Portland building permits | March 10, 2025

DJC Oregon 10 Mar 2025
Plans call for repairing the school building by removing and replacing flooring and roofing at indicated areas, replacing the fire alarm system, and replacing indicated water supply piping ... Plans call ...
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‘Ceasefire’ is a hollow word for Palestinians – the killings, displacements and denial of aid continue

The Observer 10 Mar 2025
It has been just over six weeks since a ceasefire came into effect in Gaza, and it’s clear that it would more accurately be called a “reduce” fire, rather than a cessation ... alarming and newsworthy.
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Oil tanker crash latest: Container ship that collided in the North Sea disaster was 'carrying ...

The Daily Mail 10 Mar 2025
'A coastguard rescue helicopter from Humberside was called, alongside lifeboats from Skegness, Bridlington, Maplethorpe and Cleethorpes, an HM Coastguard fixed wing aircraft and nearby vessels with fire-fighting capability.
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North Sea crash latest: Expert claims crew were NOT keeping a 'proper lookout' before cataphoric ...

The Daily Mail 10 Mar 2025
'A coastguard rescue helicopter from Humberside was called, alongside lifeboats from Skegness, Bridlington, Maplethorpe and Cleethorpes, an HM Coastguard fixed wing aircraft and nearby vessels with fire-fighting capability.
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EDITORIAL: Spring forward, change your alarm batteries - The Union-Recorder | The Union-Recorder

The Union-Recorder 08 Mar 2025
Call Baldwin County Fire Rescue at 478-445-4780 or ... The two times a year we change our clocks also serve as a valuable reminder to change the batteries in our fire alarms and carbon monoxide monitors.
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‘Bitter state of mind’: Kevin Carlson’s statement reveals why he set fire to Bidwell Mansion

Chico Enterprise Record 07 Mar 2025
10, the day before the fire ... “I had initially planned on stopping at the emergency call box and reporting the fire I also thought the mansion had an alarm and fire suppression system in place,” Carlson wrote.
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Smelling smoke in South Florida? Wildfire raised concern amid the gusty weather

Sun Sentinel 06 Mar 2025
The smell of smoke alarmed residents in parts of South Florida, prompting more than 150 calls within an hour to a fire rescue dispatch center ... Despite the influx of calls, fire rescue officials said no ...
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No injuries reported in three-alarm Prospect Park fire that damaged multiple buildings

northjersey.com 06 Mar 2025
Tips for fire safety ... The working fire in Prospect Park ... A second and third alarm were called as heavy fire spread through the structures, the department stated ... The fire remains under investigation.
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BBC Radio 2 presenter Jeremy Vine dresses up as The Gruffalo for World Book Day

AOL 06 Mar 2025
Prior to the interview, Vine’s programme was briefly interrupted by a fire alarm which forced the presenter to evacuate from the building. Vine confirmed some minutes later that there had not been a fire, calling the evacuation “impressive”.
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3-alarm fire reported at Arlington townhomes community near Randol Mill Park

NBC News 06 Mar 2025
Arlington firefighters were called to a 3-alarm fire at the Parkside Townhomes on Thursday morning ... .
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Light smoke visible in Woodland Park due to pile burning Thursday

Colorado Springs Gazette 06 Mar 2025
Although light smoke may be visible, according to the National Forest Service the public should not be alarmed or call 911 to report a fire based on the ...
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