Fire Prevention Week (Oct. 9-15) is fast approaching, and the Derby Fire & Rescue Department will conduct many fire prevention activities during October. Our goal every year is to give as many Derby youth as possible life-saving knowledge about fire safety and prevention.

How many services can you name that are available 24/7/365? Not many. While police and fire services come to mind, I also think of city water and wastewater staff who respond to emergencies. Whether in the middle of the night or on weekends, they fix broken lines and service disruptions, like on August 19 when seven inches of rain fell in three hours on a Friday evening. During the rain, they were blocking flooded streets. For many days after, they removed blockages from drainage ways and made repairs.