GRANVILLE – The Granville Fire Department is looking to implement Knox Key Boxes for local businesses, municipalities, and residents in town.
Known as a rapid access system, the Knox Key Box provides people with a weather-resistant box that can be installed near the main entry door of their building or residence.
Granville Fire Department. (WNG File Photo)
Granville Fire Chief Matt Ripley pointed out that Knox Key Boxes are common for commercial places but said it’s much rarer for residents to have them.
“The residential ones are definitely going to be important for us,” said Ripley. “It’s definitely something for those that have the emergency call buttons for the elderly.”
The Granville Fire Department sees this program as a benefit when residents have medical emergencies. When arriving to a residence, homes with a Knox Key Box allow first responders access to a key that will enable them to enter the home by using a key instead of having to force their way in and potentially damaging a door.
“It’s bad enough that the residents are having the medical emergency, unfortunately our only option is to force our way in,” said Ripley.
Costing anywhere from $500 to $1,000 for a contractor to replace a door, residents will have the opportunity to save a lot of money by investing in the Knox Key Boxes, which will range from $165 to $185 to purchase.
Despite the Granville Fire Department announcing this week their goal to bring the rapid-access system to their community, Ripley has already seen interest.
“So far, we’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback and it’s definitely something we want to implement and hopefully a lot of residents take advantage of it,” said Ripley.
If residents want to purchase the Knox Key Boxes, they can call the Granville Fire Department at 413-357-8572 for more information or go on Knox’s website to order them.
Knox has provided these key boxes to over 13,500 fire jurisdictions across North America for the last 40 years.
