Oliver Paipoonge Fire & Emergency Services

Home
Canada
Kakabeka Falls, ON
Oliver Paipoonge Fire & Emergency Services

Municipal volunteer emergency services provider

09/29/2026

Want to join your local fire department? We're recruiting !
No experience required ! We'll training you to be a certified fire fighter and emergency first responder!
APPLY BEFORE IT'S TOO LATE! Applications close on October 12th.

09/28/2026

🚨 SAVED BY THE BEEP! 🚨
Monday, September 28, 2026, is Ontario’s Test Your Smoke Alarm Day.

Take a few minutes today to press the test button on every smoke alarm in your home.

✅ Test every smoke alarm
✅ Make sure alarms are installed on every level and outside all sleeping areas
✅ Replace batteries when needed
✅ Check the expiry date and replace alarms according to the manufacturer’s instructions
✅ Practise your home escape plan with everyone in your household

A working smoke alarm provides the early warning you need to escape safely. Don’t wait for an emergency—test your alarms and be Saved by the Beep!

🔊 Test it. Hear it. Know you’re protected.

09/25/2026

🔥❄️ SPACE HEATER SAFETY—GIVE HEATERS SPACE

Portable space heaters can provide extra warmth during cold weather, but they must be used carefully. Anything placed too close can overheat and catch fire.

Use your heater safely:

📏 Keep at least one metre (three feet) between the heater and curtains, bedding, furniture, clothing, paper and anything else that can burn.
🔌 Plug the heater directly into a wall outlet—never use an extension cord or power bar.
⬆️ Place it upright on a solid, level surface where it cannot be knocked over.
🐾 Keep children and pets outside the clearance area.
⚡ Inspect the plug and cord before every use. Stop using the heater if either is damaged, unusually warm or discoloured.
🚫 Never place the cord under a rug or across a walkway.
💧 Keep electric heaters away from water and wet areas.
✅ Use a certified heater with tip-over and overheat protection.
👀 Never leave a space heater operating unattended.

Always turn the heater off and unplug it before leaving the room or going to sleep. Allow it to cool before moving or storing it.

Heat your room—not your risk.

09/24/2026

🍂 FALL WILDLIFE ALERT 🐻

As wildlife prepares for winter, animals may travel closer to homes and neighbourhoods in search of food—especially around properties with fruit trees.

Help prevent unwanted encounters:

- Pick ripe and fallen fruit promptly.
- Store garbage and compost securely.
- Remove outdoor pet food and birdseed.
- Clean barbecues and grease traps.
- Keep pets leashed and supervise children outdoors.
- Never approach or feed wildlife.
- Give animals plenty of space and a clear escape route.

Stay alert, particularly around dawn and dusk. If an animal poses an immediate threat to people, call 911.

Remove the food source. Reduce the risk. Respect wildlife.

09/23/2026

🔥🏠 PREPARE YOUR CHIMNEY BEFORE THE HEATING SEASON

As temperatures drop, fireplaces and wood-burning appliances begin working overtime. Before lighting the first fire of the season, have your chimney and venting system inspected.

Burning wood produces creosote—a combustible residue that can accumulate inside the chimney. If it ignites, it can create an intense chimney fire and potentially spread into the home.

Help reduce the risk:

✅ Have your chimney, flue and wood-burning appliance inspected annually.
✅ Have creosote and other deposits removed as needed by a qualified professional.
✅ Burn only dry, seasoned firewood.
✅ Never burn garbage, painted or treated wood, cardboard or household waste.
✅ Keep the stove or fireplace door closed as designed.
✅ Use a secure fireplace screen when required.
✅ Dispose of cooled ashes in a covered metal container stored outdoors, away from buildings and combustibles.
✅ Install and test smoke and carbon monoxide alarms.

Warning signs of a chimney fire may include a loud roaring sound, unusual vibration, dense smoke, flames or sparks coming from the chimney.

If you suspect a chimney fire, get everyone outside and call 9-1-1. Do not attempt to fight it or use the appliance again until it has been professionally inspected.

A clean chimney is a safer chimney.

Prepare now—before the heating season.

09/22/2026

🚨 ALARMS DON’T LAST FOREVER

Smoke and carbon monoxide alarms have a limited service life. Even if an alarm looks clean and sounds during a test, its sensors can become less reliable as it ages.

Check your alarms today:

1️⃣ Carefully remove the alarm from its mounting base.
2️⃣ Find the manufacture date or replace-by date on the back.
3️⃣ Check the manufacturer’s instructions for the required replacement period.
4️⃣ Replace the entire alarm when it reaches the end of its service life.

Many smoke alarms must be replaced after approximately 10 years, while carbon monoxide alarm lifespans vary by model and manufacturer. Always follow the instructions provided with your specific alarm.

Remember to:

✅ Test every smoke and CO alarm monthly.
✅ Replace batteries when required by the manufacturer.
✅ Never paint, cover, disconnect or disable an alarm.
✅ Replace an alarm that is damaged, expired or fails to sound during testing.
✅ Learn the difference between a low-battery chirp and an end-of-life warning.

If you cannot find a manufacture date or determine the alarm’s age, the safest choice is to replace it.

Test monthly. Replace when required.

When in doubt, replace it.

09/21/2026

🚆 Railway Safety Week | September 21–27, 2026

Railway tracks are never a safe place to walk, play, take photographs or ride recreational vehicles. Trains can arrive at any time, from either direction—and they may be travelling faster and be closer than they appear.

Help prevent railway-related tragedies:

✅ Stop, look and listen at every crossing.
✅ Obey all warning lights, bells, signs and gates.
✅ Never drive around lowered crossing gates.
✅ Cross only at designated railway crossings.
✅ Keep children and pets away from railway tracks.
✅ Never trespass on railway property.

If your vehicle becomes stuck on the tracks, get everyone out immediately, move a safe distance away and call 911.

One unsafe decision can have life-changing consequences.

See Tracks? Think Train.
Look. Listen. Live.

09/18/2026

🎓🏠 DORM LIVING—FIRE SAFETY STARTS WITH YOU

Moving into residence brings new independence—and a shared responsibility to keep everyone in the building safe.

Before settling in:

🚪 Learn at least two ways out of your room and building.
🗺️ Locate exit stairs, pull stations and outdoor meeting areas.
📦 Keep hallways, doorways and exits clear of shoes, boxes and furniture.
🚨 Test your smoke alarm as permitted and report any problem immediately.
🚫 Never cover, remove, disconnect or disable an alarm.
🔌 Avoid overloaded outlets and never connect power bars together.
🍳 Follow all residence rules for cooking and electrical appliances.
🕯️ Do not use candles or other open-flame items where prohibited.

When the building alarm sounds:

➡️ Leave immediately—never wait to see whether it is a real emergency.
➡️ Close your door behind you if it is safe to do so.
➡️ Use the stairs, never the elevator.
➡️ Go to the designated meeting area.
➡️ Stay outside until authorized personnel say it is safe to return.

Your choices can affect every student in the building.

When the alarm sounds—get out.

Get out. Stay out. Call 9-1-1.

09/17/2026

Last week, members of the OPFES team took part in auto extrication training, focusing on tool control and finesse. Members were broke up in two teams to work on two scenarios - lift some "debris" off a "patient" using airbags and chocking using the appropriate methods. One catch - the "car" has to remain on the debris. The other scenario was to "open" the wooden prop "car door" with the hydraulics and extricate the "apple" without crushing the apple. The night ended with a fun relay, again using tools to bring the apple in one piece to the garbage can.... if the apple was crushed or dropped, the member had to restart. New recruits had the chance to test the tools and get a feeling of the weight, the use and how to open and close the tool with delicacy. Overall, it was a great night!! Next session, putting the learning to the test with real life scenarios and vehicles.

09/16/2026

🚨 SMOKE ALARM SAFETY IN CAMPUS AND STUDENT HOUSING

Whether you live in a residence, rented room, apartment or shared off-campus house, working smoke alarms provide the early warning needed to escape a fire.

Landlords and property owners must:

🏠 Provide and maintain required smoke alarms.
🔧 Ensure alarms are operating when a tenant takes possession.
🔋 Repair or replace alarms that are missing, damaged, expired or not working.
📋 Follow applicable Ontario Fire Code requirements.

Students and tenants must:

✅ Test smoke alarms monthly using the test button.
📞 Notify the landlord immediately if an alarm is missing, damaged or not working.
🚫 Never remove the battery, cover, disconnect or disable an alarm.
🚨 Leave immediately whenever the alarm sounds—never assume it is false.

Smoke alarms are life-safety equipment, not decorations. Tampering with an alarm can place everyone in the building at risk and may result in enforcement action.

Know two ways out, keep exits clear and choose an outdoor meeting place.

No alarm. No warning. No second chance.

Address

24 Rupert Street
Kakabeka Falls, ON
P0T1W0

Website

http://www.oliverpaipoonge.ca/fire-service

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Oliver Paipoonge Fire & Emergency Services posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Want your organization to be the top-listed Government Service in Kakabeka Falls?