I was recently hired to find a water / moisture problem in a condominium complex here on the Gulf Coast of Florida. We had spent countless hours tacking down wind currents, water leaks and attempting to define building techniques. On our third day I decided to use a smoke pencil to see where the air currents were coming and going within elevators and shafts. I knew we had to use it sparingly due to the smoke / fire alarms installed. This worked great from the top floor down to the 2nd floor. Yes, Whoops!!! The alarm started sounding and it was near deafening inside the building. "This is not a test, you must evacuate the building immediately. This is a fire alarm, you must exit the premises immediately". I am a fire fighter from a nearby town and so I called 911 to notify them of my error. To late, there engines were en-route and they wouldn't stop until they got there. What seemed like an eternity (though it was only a matter of minutes) we were watching everyone exit the building via the stairs. Spring break has started here, what an array of clothing can be found at noon in the middle of the week. Kids in PJ's, girls in bikini's and somebody I'm sure was Walter from "Grumpy Old Men" Most people took it pretty well as I told them what had happened.
I was sure embarrassed to tell the Fire Department when they arrived what had happened. I had to sign a fairly expensive piece of paper stating what I did. Lots of lessons to be learned here. Things like, when to use a smoke pencil, when not to use a smoke pencil, how to turn off a fire / smoke alarm in a condominium, response times of fire departments, how to contact the management and alarm company quickly, and of course how to swallow some pride.
What did you do today?
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