Fire Company Gun Survey

gunpaq

Just opened today's mail and our local fire company is doing a safety survey for the local emergency services (township fire, police & EMT). Evidently they are taking inventory of hazardous items in homes and classifying each home with a certain risk rating so when 911 is called the township's emergency services know how to better respond and what to expect. A couple of the questions are: Do you have any firearms in your home...how many...what type...where located...are they in a safe or have trigger locks...do you have ammunition...how much...where stored, etc.? Also they ask for a list of the firearms and ammo incase they may be stolen. This is a very thorough survey as it asks about laundy soap, diapers, pets, elderly persons, oxygen, gasoline, power tools, pesticides, etc., etc.,and so on, but they do not ask for a list of anything else but firearms and ammunition. They also offer free on site safety inspections and to help fill out the survey. I think this letter and survey form goes into the round file with the rest of the junk mail. It seems to me, no matter what the good intentions may be, that this is a little bit of Big Brother in local government. Would this survey give the local police probable cause and the right to search and seizure without a warrent by the home owner or apartment dweller voluntarily signing this survey document and providing an inventory of personal property, etc.? I also can see this survey as being a source of income for the township in the form of fines to the homeowners who unknowingly may be in violation of township zoning laws by what they list on the survey form. I wonder how many sheep will fill this out, sign it and send it in?

Pack slow, fall stable, pull high, hit dead center.

Gordian Blade

You're right, the circular file is the proper destination for that form. They may have good intentions, but the road to Hell and all that. I sent the long census form straight to the recycle can in 2000, I guess that makes me a criminal sociopath, but with an environmental conscience.

Edited by - Gordian Blade on 06/05/2002 08:35:38

lead

Just curious, does the document state that it is a voluntary survey? I think they would be on legal shaky ground if they tied this to emergency services offered, but that wouldn't stop someone from trying to make it mandatory.

Alpine

My question is why are they so curious about ammo and guns? A propane tank for a BBQ or a can of gasoline has more explosive force than ammo.
File that in the round file. They are digging for information they have no right to.

If you ain't got pictures, I wasn't there.

BT99

A few years ago I received the same type of "request". I sent it back
with a note that this information was none of their business. If
they felt they would be in danger in responding to a fire, without this information, then just don't respond, everything is insured.

S&W Man

Aw, come on guys. Circular file 13 isn't the correct place for a survey like this. When I got one once, I ran it thru th shreeder and let the girls use it for hamster bedding. Works great! Frankly this info is NONE of their ******* buisness. I might see the need for questions about people with special needs or oxygen tanks or gas tanks, but frankly, that is none of their buisness either.

The second admendment GUARANTEES the other nine and the Constitution!

Rob Greene

Sadly, it says a lot when we're nervous about the intentions of our government. Do you think that Paul Revere filled out forms to let the British Government know where the muskets were hidden or the powder and balls were being stored?

**It is your right to posess a firearm. In case of questions, please refer to ammendment 2, United States Constitution.**

gunpaq

Was able to talk with one of our firemen yesterday about the survey form. According to him it is mandatory to fill out if you want any of the township emergency services to come to your house when you call 911 (the survey says nothing about being mandatory or voluntary). He said that wanting to know the wherabouts, numbers and types of firearms in the township is for the protection of emergency personnel when responding to a call. One has to keep in mind that this is the same township whose police and EMT's let an intoxicated man bleed to death who accidently shot himself as he dismounted his horse after fox hunting (his .22 pistol discharged from striking the ground after falling from the saddle holster) as they would not enter his house (where he cralled to) for fear of putting their lives in jeapordy because he was known to have guns in the house. His estate sued the hell out of the township afterwards and won a nondisclosed settlement. As far as I am concerned, I opposeed the implimentation of the 911 system 20 years ago, I have my property insured, and I have my family, person and property protected RRW Security (Ruger, Remington & Winchester). Thank God that non of our township's gutless wonders were on the NYPD or NYFD on 9/11 as they may have not responded because box cutters were somewhere in the towers. As a note, the guy who bled to death was my elderly neighbor and after emergency personnel did enter the house the police saw fit to search and remove all his firearms which all but a few (his Garand, 1st gen Colt, & 1911 .45) were returned after the law suit. I told my firman friend, who is my cousin, that I read the survey form and it's on it's way (to the burn pile).

Pack slow, fall stable, pull high, hit dead center.

airborne

I would totally disregard. If you return informing them it's none of their business, you could open a can of worms.

It's public information that aproximately 40/45% of the households in this country has some type of firearm. doubt if many have a firearm without ammunition.



B - BreatheR - RelaxA - AimS - SightS - Squeeze

jastr

I got 2 answers for you. #1 round file for the survey. #2 time too move!

lets all be responsible! shoot a criminal! Remember 0% of firearms pull there own trigger!