The latest decision in a lawsuit brought by ADT and other alarm companies over public entities taking over fire alarm monitoring in the state contains “a lot of positive things for the alarm industry,” according to the executive director of the Illinois Electronic Security Association (IESA).

“I would sum it up by saying that this was a great step forward for licensed alarm contractors in the state as well as the fire services,” Kevin Lehan told Security Systems News. “I know that they had been waiting for this ruling, as well as our industry has, and the ultimate winners are going to be the consumers.”

Among key provisions of the modified permanent injunction order issued in federal court last week by Judge Milton Shadur are ones that say the public Lisle-Woodridge Fire District can’t require private businesses to contract only with the district for fire alarm monitoring, and that it can’t ban the businesses from contracting with private central stations that meet approved codes and standards.

 Source: http://www.securitysystemsnews.com/article/ruling-illinois-fire-alarm-monitoring-case-positive-industry

A retired New Jersey locksmith sold a "firemen's key ring" on eBay to a New York Post reporter, alarming some city officials who fear the keys—at least those that apparently still work—could be used for evil.

Daniel Ferraris, the 69-year-old retired locksmith from Union City, N.J., sold the set of five keys to the "undercover"reporter for $149.95.

Read the full story at http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/locksmith-keys-ebay-fdny-nyc-141712706.html

Every year, San Francisco firefighters respond to emergency calls from a street alarm box system that was in use when horses still pulled the engines.

There's almost no part of the city that's more than two blocks away from one of the 2,040 antique red iron boxes that use telegraph technology, and almost all carrying the name of the city's defunct Department of Electricity. And in an age when cell phones and instant communications have spelled doom for the boxes in other major cities, San Francisco is happy with its link to the past.

"The perception is that the system is old and antiquated, but it's proven itself to be an important part of the redundancy that's built into our system," said Fire Chief Joanne Hayes-White.

New York, which still has about 15,000 active call boxes, found out the need during the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, when cell phone lines were instantly overloaded, crashing the network along much of the East Coast.

San Francisco had its own communications disaster when the Loma Prieta earthquake hit in 1989, destroying cell towers and cutting power to parts of the city.

"The system works when others don't," said Jack Donohoe, public safety wire manager for the city's Department of Technology, which keeps both the fire boxes and the smaller police box system running. "When the earthquake hit, some of the boxes in the Marina were tilted like modern art, but the system worked perfectly."

Read more: http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2012/02/06/MNE41N2TCM.DTL#ixzz1ltY37uch

source: http://www.nfpa.org/newsReleaseDetails.asp?categoryid=488&itemId=53936

November 3, 2011—Saying the MA Board of Building Regulations and Standards (BBRS) is playing with fire, National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) President James M. Shannon and representatives of every major fire service organization in the state came together on November 3rd to protest against the new building code in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

All national model building codes include the requirement for fire sprinklers in new one- and two-family homes. The BBRS promulgated a building code for the Commonwealth in August and omitted the provision to require home fire sprinklers in new construction.