Three businesses in Kinder are now utilizing the Knox box, and Fire Chief Jacob Lacour is offering other businesses to consider this option to assist in quick responses in cases of fire alarms.
“We are first responders,” he said. “We are trained to jump up in the middle of the night and answer an alarm.”
Sometimes firefighters arrive on the scene, and a key holder has to be located. And the key holder has to dress and travel to the scene to give firefighters access to the building to determine if smoke or fire exist inside. Sometimes a key holder lives out of town, and it takes time to respond.
In the meantime, Lacour said fire could be inside the building damaging the structure. And the majority of the time, it’s a false alarm, but firemen don’t know that. They have to wait at the scene for the key holder.
The Knox box allows a key to be secured outside the building in a locked box, which takes a special key to open giving firefighters quicker access to the building.
LaCour said the new Dollar Store coming to town will be the fourth business to add a Knox box.
Boxes can be mounted on the outside of the building or even recessed into the building. The only Knox master key is at the fire department. It takes a four digit pen to take possession of the key, and LaCour said, as fire chief, he will be the only one to have access to it.
“It’s very secure,” he said. “And the key is made specific for my district. Someone cannot cross district lines and use their Knox key to open boxes here. Keys are unique to each area.”
Lacour said the key is time stamped when it is taken out of its locked box. Upgrading a model also allows the business owner to tie the Knox box into their alarm system. And the alarm can be set to go off when the Knox box is accessed.
The department does not sell the Knox boxes. Interested residents will have to go to the company’s website, knoxbox.com.
He said if enough businesses decide to utilize this tool, then the department will upgrade its box on the first truck.
Surface mounted boxes begin at approximately $487, and tamper proof boxes are $506. Homeowner rates are sightly less. LaCour said he could see the benefit of the Knox box for older residents. They fall down in their home and call for help but cannot unlock the door. To prevent first responders from having to break-into the home.
These boxes would prevent firefighters from having to damage a door to gain entry into a business or home.
If you want to learn more about the benefits of this box, call LaCour to discuss the pros and cons and how they work.
