Building Safety Where You Live, Work and Play

When you enter a house or building, most likely you’re not thinking about whether it is properly
constructed and safe. Fortunately, your local safety experts think about building safety and fire prevention every day. To help raise awareness of building safety, the Village of Round Lake and the Building Department is celebrating Building Safety Week from May 5 through 11.

Across the nation, communities will promote the use and understanding of building safety and fire prevention codes to protect lives and property. The theme is “Building Safety: Where You Live, Work and Play.” “The important work we do is often overlooked until a catastrophic tragedy occurs,” said Round Lake Building Commissioner Dale Engebretson. “When building safety and fire prevention experts inspect buildings during and after construction, we help to ensure that the places where you live, learn, work and play are safe.”

Building safety and fire prevention codes address all aspects of construction, such as structural soundness of buildings, reliability of fire prevention and suppression systems, plumbing and mechanical systems, and energy efficiency and sustainability. To ensure buildings are safe requires the active participation of building safety and fire prevention officials, architects, builders, engineers, and others in the construction industry, as well as property owners. “Public safety is our number one concern,” said Engebretson. “During Building Safety Week and all year long, building safety and fire prevention officials are here to help protect you and your Round Lake.”

Building Safety Week, first observed in 1980, is sponsored by the International Code Council, a membership organization dedicated to building safety and fire prevention, of which Round Lake is an active member. The International Code Council develops the codes used to construct residential and commercial buildings, including homes and schools. Most U.S. cities, counties and states choose the International Codes—building safety codes developed by the International Code Council.

The picture is of me presents Building Commissioner Dale Engebretson with a proclamation for Building Safety Week.