N.J. may repeal fire extinguisher requirement — on advice of safety panel

A New Jersey Senate committee will consider legislation Monday that would end a regulation that one- and two-family residences be equipped with a portable fire extinguisher.

Sen. Tony Bucco, the primary sponsor of the measure, says it was recommended by the state fire safety committee.

Fire extinguishers can give residents a false sense of security, said Bucco, R-Morris.

“Many people don’t know how to use them properly. Also they do become outdated,” he said. “If they misuse them and they jam up or whatever, they’re risking their own lives as well as their loved ones who are in the house with them.”

Bucco says an extinguisher might not be enough to suppress a fire.

He says safety officials would prefer that residents call the fire department to battle a blaze and get out of a burning building as quickly as possible.