Garbage-Bagged Boxes To Be Removed From Ramsey Streets

The more than 50 now-defunct fire alarm boxes spread throughout Ramsey are about to be taken down for good, Borough Administrator Bruce Vozeh said at a Mayor and Council meeting Wednesday night.

The boxes, which now have garbage bags over them, have been out of commission for “quite some time,” Vozeh said. “You used to pull on them during an emergency, but with cell phones now, people just call 911.”

According to Councilwoman Deirdre Dillion, the emergency boxes have not been pulled by a resident in at least 13 years.

Before the borough removes the bagged boxes, however, Vozeh said internal wiring must be disconnected.

“The boxes aren’t operational, but the cabling that runs through [and below] them still [controls] the fire alarm system used by borough buildings,” Vozeh explained. Until Ramsey’s buildings can fully transition to a radio-based alarm system, the boxes cannot be removed.

The administrator said once the system conversion is complete, the “boxes will start coming down.” The conversion should be done by the end of next week, he said, after which time the “process” of removing the boxes can begin.

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