Eastside Fire and Rescue app asks for resident input

Eastside Fire and Rescue is using new technology called Community Connect that it says will save time and save lives. It gets better if residents sign up and share crucial information about their home, family and pets.

“Do you have pets in the home, do you have an elderly person in the home, do you have someone with special needs we might need to get to as soon as possible if the house is on fire?” explained Lt. Kyle Wood, of Eastside Fire and Rescue. “It will make rescues safer if we need to perform a rescue, accountability getting everybody out of their home.”

The app is used in the field by firefighters. They will have the details about your home before they get there. You can submit your information through the website at https://firstduesizeup.com/cc/eastside/ . It is up to homeowners to share as little or as much information as they want. You can include everything from where family members sleep to what kind of roof is on the home. Homeowners can share if there is a gas line to the house or a propane tank outside, and where the shut-off valves are located.

Eastside Fire and Rescue covers about 200 square miles on the Eastside. So far, hundreds of residents and businesses have signed up for Community Connect. The department says the more people who sign up, the better. The information is secure and is matched in the app with county records that describe the square footage of the home.

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