Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I lived a half-block away from the police/fire station - the fire department didn't get nearly as many calls as the police department, and the fire trucks rumbling by rarely bothered me. I don't recall sirens ever waking me.
Save my friends father's life... he had a heart attack and the station was literally across the street... the truck was coming back from a call and he ran into the street and said Dad is having a heart attack...
The fire station houses two fire engines, two ambulances, a communications vehicle, and various staff cars. I believe it must be the main fire station of the town.
The house is exactly 340 ft in straight line from the fire station accordign to google maps. The area behind the firestation is big subdivision of SF homes.
In some cases, the fire trucks have agreed to wait a certain distance form the station before starting their sirens, obviously when traffic is low. Ask at the fire station and they will give you some useful info.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Aronwright
Thanks everyone!
The fire station houses two fire engines, two ambulances, a communications vehicle, and various staff cars. I believe it must be the main fire station of the town.
The house is exactly 340 ft in straight line from the fire station accordign to google maps. The area behind the firestation is big subdivision of SF homes.
I agree with luv4horses. Where I lived in Santa Clara, CA, I was 1 block from the fire station, and they did not turn on their sirens until they got some distance away - not sure how far, but it wasn't that big of a deal.
BUT, the street I lived on was a main thoroughfare straight to the hospital. It was the ambulances going to the hospital that made all the noise (as far as sirens go). After reading your description that it also houses ambulances, I would ask them if they wait to turn all sirens on, including the ambulances, and how far away they do turn them on.
I also had a lot of traffic noise from the street in that location, though, and so I got a big floor fan for white noise. If you end up being woken up by sirens, you could always go for white noise.
I live about four blocks from our station. They got rid of the alert siren in the firehouse several years ago after complaints from residents in a high dollar townhouse development complained. The residents claimed that they didn't notice the station when they bought their units. Ok.
The sirens never bothered me nor do the ones on the equipment now. I sort of miss the alert siren.
When I first moved to this town 40 years ago, the fire station used an air horn signal to alert the volunteers that there was a call. The signal gave the location of the call by a series of numerical blasts, i.e., three blasts meant the fire was on Main St. Three blasts with a brief silence and then seven blasts meant the fire was on Elm St. Every house had a card with the signal code. Believe me, every house in town (it's really small) could hear the signal. Additionally, the alarm was tested every night at 10 PM by blowing one blast. (That was also curfew for the kids) It wasn't a very busy department so it wasn't a major annoyance.
When the department went to pagers, the old air horn signal was abandoned.
Now, the only sound is the neighbor's yappy dog. They're the only ones who can't hear it.
Sounds like the OP's department is a pretty busy one - I think I'd visit before I signed the sales agreement and ask how often they get called.
The pros are:
-Lower homeowners' insurance
-peace of mind that they are close in case of emergency
The cons are:
-Nothing, it's not a busy station. We hear sirens at night maybe twice a year. Even during the day we don't really notice, they tend to not turn them on until they are in the street and headed away. So it's only for a few seconds anyway.
We are less then a block away from a fire station. I actual don't know what their policy is regarding the sirens but I have never heard one at night. I hear them leave during the day every time. They must not turn on the sirens at night until they exit the neighborhood.
When I lived in downtown LB I was a block away from a police station. You just get used to the noise after a while.
What is LB? Lower Bronx?
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.