FIREFIGHTERS ENCOURAGE BUSINESS KNOX BOXES

When a fire alarm is sounding in a business in the middle of the night, the fire department is left with few choices when it comes to gaining entry.

Some businesses have provided the department with keys, which leave firefighters on the scene hunting and pecking through a mass of more than 300 master keys looking for the right one.

Other businesses have security systems that will take time calling a responder with a key to meet the emergency crews outside to unlock the door.

And then there's always the sure-fire way of getting in: the ax.

To eliminate the hassle and wasted time a key-search can cause, Cape Girardeau Fire Chief Robert L. Ridgeway is asking area businesses to install Knox Rapid Entry Systems -- or Knox-Boxes -- on the outside of the buildings.

"This is strictly voluntary," said Ridgeway. "In the future we might look into passing an ordinance that would require certain new buildings like high-rises and some manufacturing plants to install Knox-Boxes, but for now we'll take what we can get."

The Knox Box is mounted on or built in to the side of the building. The box itself, designed like a mini-safe, will hold clearly labeled, master keys to the building. Floor plans and lists of chemicals or other combustible items also can be placed in the box.

"It would really be easier for someone to break into a building than it would be for them to get into the box," said Ridgeway. "Besides, the boxes can be easily wired into the building's existing security system."

The boxes are opened by a single, master key, which only the business itself and the fire department would carry.

"A business has to have fire department approval to get a Knox Box," Ridgeway said. "The keys cannot be duplicated. We would keep the master key in a locked box inside the fire trucks. Only four people on each shift will have access to those keys.

"If a business changes a lock in their building, they no longer have to worry about getting the fire department a copy of the key," he said. "All they will have to do is replace the key in the box."

Although the boxes start at about $75 each, the money they can save in property-damage costs in the long run far outweigh the initial investment, Ridgeway said.

"If we have to break a window or bust a door open to get inside, it's going to cost the property owner much more than a Knox Box," said Ridgeway. "It's something businesses are doing in several other metropolitan communities and it's working well for everyone.

"We just can't go on carrying all the keys to area businesses," Ridgeway said. "The logistics and the potential for security problems are just incredible."

Ridgeway said the fire department plans to return master keys to all area businesses by July 1. Those businesses who need additional time to install a Knox Box will be afforded it, he said.

For more information about Knox Boxes, call the Cape Girardeau Fire Department at 334-3211.