Fire & Fire Prevention

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New Safety Requirements Starting January 1, 2026 for existing homes

Carbon monoxide (CO) is an invisible, odourless, and deadly gas. Keeping your family safe means ensuring you have working CO alarms properly installed in your home. New requirements are coming into effect on January 1, 2026, that expand where CO alarms must be placed in existing homes.

Where Do the New Requirements Apply?

The updated requirements apply to all existing homes that have any of the following:

• A fuel-burning appliance (like a furnace, water heater, or stove that uses natural gas, propane, oil, or wood)
• A fireplace
• An attached garage
• Effective January 1, 2026: Air for heating that comes from a fuel-burning appliance not contained within the home (e.g., an appliance in a utility shed).

Common types of homes include:

• Detached or Semi-Detached Houses
• Townhouses
• Cottages

Where Must CO Alarms Be Installed?

If your home meets any of the conditions above, you must install a CO alarm in these two locations:

1. Adjacent to each sleeping area (near all bedrooms).
2. Effective January 1, 2026: On every storey (floor) of your home, including storeys that do \not have a sleeping area.

Buying and Installing Your CO Alarms

Buying

When buying a CO alarm, make sure it has the logo of a recognized standards testing agency to ensure they meet Canadian performance standards. Some examples of recognized standards testing agencies and their logos include:

• Canadian Standards Association (CSA)
• Underwriters Laboratories of Canada (ULC)
• Intertek (ETL)

Under the Fire Code, carbon monoxide alarms are permitted to be:

• Hardwired (connected directly to an electrical system).
• Battery-operated (portable or permanently mounted).
• Plug-in devices (plugs into a standard electrical outlet).

Many devices on the market are combined units that include both a smoke alarm and carbon monoxide alarm in one device.

Installing

• Follow the manufacturer’s instructions for installation and placement of CO alarms.

Who is Responsible for Compliance?

• In Owner-Occupied homes, the Homeowner is responsible for complying with the CO alarm requirements in the Fire Code.
• In Rental Homes, the Landlord is responsible for complying with the CO alarm requirements in the Fire Code.

Need Clarification?

For questions about CO alarm requirements that may apply to your home, please contact your local fire department. They are the authority responsible for enforcing the Fire Code in your area.

Is your family prepared for an emergency event?

The Township of Asphodel-Norwood Emergency Awareness Guide can help provide you with the information you need to make a plan and be better prepared. Be sure to check the expiry date of the contents in your Emergency Survival Kit twice a year.

In an emergency, your family may not be together, or you may be asked to evacuate your home. Thinking about what you would do in different situations and preparing a plan with every member of your family is the first step to being prepared.

• Emergency Guide - Assist Children during an emergency (123 KB)
• Emergency Guide - Assist Seniors during an emergency (413 KB)
• Emergency Guide - Assist people with disabilities/special needs during an emergency (247 KB)
• Emergency Guide - Don't forget your pet during an emergency (637 KB)

Mission Statement/Goals

It shall be the goal of the A-N Fire Department to provide fire protection through the established level of service designed to protect the lives, property, and the environment of the inhabitants of the response area; first to the corporation; second to those municipalities requiring assistance through the authorized mutual aid plan, and third to those municipalities which are provided fire protection services by the department under an authorized agreement.

Furthermore, to protect the lives and well being of the firefighters to ensure the level of training, personnel, and equipment meets the approved level of service.

Effective fire inspections, plan reviews and public education efforts conducted by the Township of Asphodel-Norwood can prevent fires and the loss of life.

To schedule a Fire Inspection, please contact the Fire Chief at 705-639-5343.

Fire Inspection Fees can be found in the Fees and Charges By-Law

It is the homeowner's responsibility to install and maintain smoke alarms on every storey of their home and outside all sleeping areas. In rental properties, it is the landlord's responsibility to ensure their rental property meets smoke alarm rules and regulations.

Remember that it is against the law to remove the batteries or tamper with smoke alarms.

What is Superior Tanker Shuttle Accreditation?

• It is when the first pumper arrives on the scene of the fire and is able to flow a minimum of 900 litres (200 imperial gallons) of water per minute within 5 minutes and maintain the flow uninterrupted for two hours.
• The site must be within eight kilometers of the sub-station and must be at least five kilometers from the location where the tankers are being reloaded.
• The water source must be available 24 hours a day and 365 days a year.

View the current Asphodel-Norwood Fire Department Superior Tanker Shuttle Accreditation Certificate (PDF 369 KB)