Retired Ottawa Fire Chief, Tim Mathias saw a lot of big fires in Ottawa during his 27 years on the Ottawa Fire Department. The J.C. Penney fire, the CoOp fire, the antique mall at First and Walnut, the Henke Car Dealership on Hickory, the Pinnacle fire east of Ottawa and several others. But, the one that affected him the most, was a fire in the early 1990’s that killed four members of the Doty family.
Mathias says there were over a dozen fatal fires in Ottawa during his career. He says the number one thing that can save a family in a fire is a working smoke alarms and, the Ottawa Fire Department gives those away at no charge. Call them today and schedule a time for them to come to your home and install smoke detectors. Carbon monoxide detectors are also available at no charge.
