WESTWOOD FIRE DEPARTMENT ANSWERS 32 INCIDENTS IN NOVEMBER

Westwood Fire Chief Brian Kronewitter reports that the Westwood Fire Department answered 32 calls
for emergency assistance during the month of November 2024. Chief Kronewitter reports that none of
the calls turned out to be a serious fire in Westwood.
The 32 emergency calls, one training session and four maintenance nights required over 430 hours of
volunteer time.
The Westwood Fire Department was called out of town under the mutual aid agreement with
neighboring fire departments eleven times in November. The WFD responded to incidents to assist the
Emerson Fire Department once, the River Vale Fire Department four times, the Washington Township
Fire department on three occasions and the Hillsdale fire department at two calls. Westwood
firefighters also sent one engine and a crew of firefighters to assist at the scene of the wildland fire in
West Milford. This crew was on scene for approximately nine hours.
Three small fires did occur in the borough. A fire in a catch basin and a brush fire were quickly
extinguished by fire crews. An oven fire was caused when a piece of plastic was left in an oven. The fire
was contained inside the oven with no extension to the surrounding area.
Automatic fire alarms were received a dozen times in November. Although no fires existed at any of
these incidents, the full fire department responds. Firefighters check the entire building to determine if
an actual fire exists. Workers in the building set off alarms at one incident. Cooking activated alarms on
two occasions. Alarm system malfunctions accounted for six calls. An overheated electric motor and
smoke from a fireplace each caused alarm activations.
Natural gas odors required the fire department respond on one occasion. This was caused by a
malfunctioning furnace. Fire crews shut the gas to the furnace and checked the surrounding area. At
these types of calls fire crews respond and check the area or building with meters. The scene was then
turned over to Public Service Gas Company technicians for further investigation.
On two occasions the department responded to Carbon Monoxide (CO) alarms. Carbon monoxide, CO, is
an odorless and colorless gas given off by improperly burning heating or cooking equipment. Like gas
calls, at these CO incidents a full fire department response is needed. Fire crews check the entire
building with meters. One of these calls was a hot water heater malfunctioning and the other was
caused when a CO detector was accidentally hit, knocked off the wall and started alarming. These calls
are also turned over to Public Service gas company technicians for further investigation.
On one occasion the fire department rescue truck was called to a motor vehicle crash that was reported
to have people trapped. The crew arrived on scene, consulted with the police and was told that no one
was trapped and no fire department action was needed.
The department also responded to a water leak and an arcing, overloaded strip outlet with no
extension.

The Westwood fire department and Fire Prevention Bureau would like to bring the following holiday
safety message from The United States Fire Administration:
Decorating homes and businesses is a long-standing tradition around the holiday season. Unfortunately,
these same decorations may increase your community's chances of a fire.
 Keep candles at least 12 inches away from anything that burns. Make sure they are in stable
holders and place them where they cannot be knocked down easily.
 Consider using battery-operated flameless candles, which can look, smell and feel like real
candles.
 Inspect holiday lights each year before you put them up. Throw away light strands with frayed or
pinched wires.
 Read manufacturer’s instructions for the number of light strands to connect.
 Water your Christmas tree every day. A dry Christmas tree can burn very hot and very fast.
 Make sure your tree is at least 3 feet away from heat sources like fireplaces, radiators, space
heaters, candles or heat vents. Also, make sure your tree does not block exits.
 Get rid of your tree after Christmas or when it is dry.
For more information, please visit the U.S. Fire Administration’s website for Fire Prevention and
Community Risk Reduction
This article was submitted by the Westwood Fire Department. Any Fire Department related questions
can be e-mailed to wwfdchief@westwoodnj.gov or by calling 201-664-0526. The fire prevention bureau
can be reached at wfpb191@usa.net or by calling 201-664-7100 ext 308. PLEASE NOTE; THESE PHONE
NUMBERS ARE BUSINESS/NON-EMERGENCY PHONE NUMBERS, FOR FIRES/EMERGENCIES CALL 911.