Safety First for Forest Hills

Police, fire and medical emergency -
Up-to-date contact information as of January 2008

SECURITY TIP - February, 2007
This tip came from a neighborhood watch coordinator.

The next time you come home for the night and you start to put your keys away, think of this:  A car alarm is a security alarm system that you probably already have and requires no installation.  Test it.  Unless the battery in your panic button is too weak, your car alarm should go off from almost everywhere inside your house and will keep honking until your battery runs down or until you reset it with the button on the key fob chain.
Put your car keys beside your bed at night.  If you hear a noise outside your home or someone trying to get in your house, just press the panic button for your car.  The alarm will be set off, and the horn will continue to sound until either you turn it off or the car battery dies.

It should work even if you park in your garage.  If your car alarm goes off when someone is trying to break in your house, odds are the burglar or rapist won't stick around.... after a few seconds all the neighbors will be looking out their windows to see who is out there and you can be sure the criminal won't want that.

And remember to carry your keys while walking to your car in a parking lot.  The alarm should work the same way there.....

This tip is something that should really be shared with everyone.  It could save a life or prevent a sexual crime.

Tom Legare
Chair, Security Committee
 
Theft Reports to Police Do Not Affect Insurance Rates 
We are aware that some lawn furniture has been stolen off a porch on Windsor. We do not have the details, but Cynthia Chapman, our community safety officer, informed us that the incident was not reported to the Police due to fear that the insurance rates would go up.
We are told that the Police do not notify the insurance company of an incident, therefore reporting an incident to the Police does not automatically notify your insurance company. You, personally, have to notify the insurance company, and that is your choice. We have confirmed this with leaders of the state's largest association of insurance agents.
 
We urge you to report all incidents to the Police, as well as suspicious activity. The Police continually emphasize how important this is. We would also urge you to report any of this to the Security Committee also. We do not want to be a busybody getting into anyone's private business, but a crime in our neighborhood is in reality the business of all of us as neighbors.