112th Precinct Community Council

home and apartment security

Mar 19, 2006

Home and Apartment Security
By Heidi Harrison Chain

Everyone should test their home fire, smoke, carbon monoxide and burglar alarms on a regular basis. Having an alarm system installed that is not working is not simply a waste of money it could result in a loss of life. Be sure to change the batteries on your smoke alarms.
If you have a home alarm company, they should be willing to let you test the system to make sure that everything is working.
If you have general security questions regarding your home or apartment, you can make an appointment with the 112th Precinct Crime Prevention officer at 718 520-9319. Police Officer Smith is trained to come to your home or apartment and conduct a survey to determine the effectiveness of door locks, windows, and alarm systems. A confidential report is written with recommendations on how to improve the security of your premises. THIS IS A FREE service provided by our precinct.
In addition, I had worked with our precinct community affairs and crime prevention officers and the precinct community council purchased burglar alarms for windows and doors. These alarms are provided to our residents in an effort to deter burglaries. These burglar alarms are FREE to our residents. . Our crime prevention officer. P.O. Smith has our supply of ALARMS. If you want a free alarm, please contact P.O. Smith at 718 520-9319.
We hope that the alarms will deter burglaries in our community. . We encourage all of our residents to take advantage of these programs.
As Spring is almost here and the weather is about to be beautiful (we hope)?— you may open the window for the spring air. Please remember to close the window when you leave your house or apartment.
We are encouraging our residents to take other precautions to protect their property and that of their neighbors:

Please be sure to lock windows and doors.

Leave lights & a radio on even if you are not home.

Use timers throughout your house or apartment that have various time changes.

Leave lights on outside the house.

Do not open the door to strangers.

Call 911 if you see suspicious activity on your block or in your apartment building