The City of Lloydminster has introduced a new fire bylaw.
The biggest change introduced by the law is a fee for false alarms. False fire alarms will now face a penalty of $250 for every alarm in excess of one per year.
Fire Chief Jordan Newton says false alarms are a problem for his department.
“As a volunteer department it’s hard, but we are responding to over three hundred false alarms, just from your residential companies alone,” Newton said. “What we’re worried more [about], is for public safety. The actual having to drive across town, quickly, with lights on, puts everyone at risk, when it’s nothing but somebody burned supper.”
Newton also says the fire department’s main worry is public safety, as driving across town with flashing lights puts other at risk. Other changes in the bylaw include the banning of burning open air fires on patios and balconies, as well as the burning of anything classified as a dangerous good.