Tourists See Island Emergency Crew in Action

Visitors gathered on the sidewalk as the Mackinac Island firetruck made a run Friday morning, August 17, after burnt food in an apartment above the Trading Post set off the building's fire alarm. Dr. Bill Chambers (standing in the road) of Mackinac Island Carriage Tours halts a dray on Main Street and radios other drivers to avoid the area. When an alarm is sounded, the fire department is notified by the alarm company, said Fire Chief Dennis Bradley. If a business knows it is a false alarm, it should call 911, he offered. Then, firemen would inspect the site and reset the fire alarm, rather than deploy the fire ruck. Otherwise, until it is a confirmed false alarm, he said, "We have to go when we get a call."