Alpena Fire Department enacts drill at the Bay View Center

ALPENA, Mich. — The Alpena Fire Department helped enact a fire drill at the Bay View Center on Friday. The center is run by a group of people who all live with a variety of mental illnesses while supporting each other by sharing experiences they’ve had in the community.

At around noon, Fire Captain Andy Marceau and other firefighters showed up to perform the drill. Members of the Bay View Center were having their first meeting in months, but when the fire trucks showed up they calmly got up and left the building. Marceau and his team then swept the building to make sure no one was left inside.

The drill went smoothly and afterwards Marceau talked with the group about how they secure an area. He said that when it comes to a fire, let the fire department handle it. “Fires double in size every minute,” he said. “It’s one thing if you have a small kitchen fire, maybe you have a cover to put on the pan. You could use a fire extinguisher, but let that be up to the firemen. You need to get out safe. When we get to a fire the best thing we can hear is that everybody is out safe.”

Member of the Bay View Center Eileen Tank says it’s comforting to know that the fire department will be there in case of an emergency. “I learned that the fire department is really good at what they do,” she said. “It helps me to realize that we’re safe if anything happens.”