Letters to the editor Jan. 4

System needed to warn against use of fireplaces

A couple of days before Christmas, yes - on two different nights, we were awakened during the night by our smoke alarms. Careful checking of the whole house for smoke or flame found no evidence of fire inside, but a smell of smoke in the air outside only.

It seems that some local residents used a wood fireplace or furnace to heat their house during extremely cold nights, and the smoke cooled, failed to rise out of the area, and very slowly drifted in dead calm air to arrive at the fresh air intake to our heating system which was designed to provide a percentage of outside fresh air to improve ventilation in an otherwise sealed atmosphere.

That works well if outside air is kept moving by wind currents, but with no wind at all, as has been the case for many days and nights recently, a cooled smoke cloud can sit or slowly drift without dispersal, causing a problem.

Since our air intake has no shutoff valve, our only recourse was to turn off the circuit breaker for the smoke alarms and also to remove the backup batteries. The alarm system has to stay disabled until we finally get some wind in the area.

Undispersed smoke may also be a health problem for some residents. We need a system advising people to not use wood fire when conditions warrant.

Pete Harding

Gardnerville

Always drive safe and sober

Many of the crashes on the stretch of Highway 50 where rumble strips are being installed were caused by impaired drivers.

During this holiday season, we believe it is urgent to remind the driving public that impaired drivers still account for more than 10,000 traffic fatalities each year nationwide. Many of these victims' families will be celebrating their first holiday season without their loved ones.

Our thoughts and prayers continue to be with families who have lost family members in drunk and/or drugged driving crashes and with those who are survivors of those crashes.

Call the Northern Nevada DUI Task Force at 775-883-4715 if you are a victim needing services. For many years, our goal with the rural areas has been "no new victims."

To accomplish that goal in 2012, we'll need all drivers to respect their privilege of driving, and always drive sober. We will need all retailers of alcohol to serve responsibly, call cabs for patrons when necessary, and just take keys from patrons when needed for safety We will need all parents to ensure that their children are always being transported by a sober, responsible, licensed driver.

Let's not repeat the tragedies of 2011. Drunk and drugged driving crashes are easily preventable.

Lastly, I would like to encourage everyone in the community to send a clear, consistent "no use" message to our young people, all those under 21.

Laurel Corkill

Rural Coordinator, Northern Nevada DUI Task Force