Garden Grove : Home-Alarm System Available to Callers

The Dale MacIntosh Center for the Handicapped and Homeless in Garden Grove became the recipient last week of a free home-alarm system--the first of 10,000 such systems to be given away by the Feelsafe Network of Southern California, a nonprofit group of security alarm companies.

Available to any caller of a toll-free number, the systems are three-button consoles that alert the police, fire department or paramedics in case of an emergency.

Tom Curran, vice president of Garden Grove-based Tri-Ed Inc., which distributes the systems, said the Feelsafe Network hopes to “give out 5,000 to 8,000 of the systems within the next few weeks.”

Curran said the network, composed of alarm companies that sell Feelsafe alarm products, plans to give the systems to senior citizens, handicapped persons and people who might not otherwise be able to afford a home-alarm system, but he added that any caller who wants a system will receive one free.

Participating alarm companies also are paying for installation costs of the system. Once installed, a customer pays a monthly fee of between $15 and $20 to cover the costs of monitoring the home or business.

Curran said the three-button consoles, although not comprehensive home-security systems, can allow a faster response time than dialing the 911 emergency telephone number.

The systems are being given out on a first-come, first-served basis to anyone who calls (800)-645-6633.