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Man pulls fire alarm at Mass. apartment, felt neighbors needed a fire drill

John Munroe received a verbal warning from Gloucester Fire Department for activating the fire alarm that resulted in vehicles and personnel rushing to the scene

Sean Horgan
Gloucester Daily Times, Mass.

It’s good to be prepared, so fire drills are usually a means to a safe end. But not when they’re unauthorized, occur at 1:30 a.m. and result in the Gloucester Fire Department sending the fire-fighting cavalry into a sleeping neighborhood.

Gloucester police had to impart that lesson early Tuesday morning to a man who pulled a fire alarm at his 93 Prospect St. residence because he thought his neighbors might benefit from a fire drill.

Police said the man, John Munroe, who lives in an apartment at the Action Inc.-owned multi-family home, received a verbal warning for activating the fire alarm that resulted Fire Department vehicles and personnel rushing to the scene under the belief they may have a fire to fight.

Instead, they found no indication of smoke or fire. Just a guy who thought a fire drill was in order.

“We performed a first-alarm response, so that put all of headquarters on the road,” Fire Chief Eric Smith said Wednesday.

Smith said six vehicles — including two fire engines and the ladder truck — and 15 firefighters responded to the alarm.

Meanwhile, he said, the city’s fire stations in Bayview and Magnolia were left to cover the remainder of the city while the headquarters contingent was on Prospect Street. And one of the other stations had to send its fire engine to Central Station for coverage.

“In that sense, it’s a real disruption,” Smith said. “If we get another call, then we’re scrambling for a response.”

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©2019 the Gloucester Daily Times (Gloucester, Mass.)

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