The Northern Lakes Fire District is employing a new weapon in its fight against fires: your doorbell.
The district has joined up with the popular video doorbell manufacturer Ring to join its Neighbors program, which — aside from providing updates from the fire department — also enables users to share video to help firefighters battle blazes.
“Really for us, it’s an avenue to reach out when we do have an emergency that occurs in a neighborhood,” fire marshal Tyler Drechsel said. “The [Neighbors] program allows us to reach out if there’s a hazardous condition or a change in your area.”
The program enables users who opt in to share video footage of nearby fires: A computer-generated map overlay at the station displays all participating users and can instantly send video footage, helping inbound firefighters get a better idea of what dangers await them.