[SquirrelKing]

Grandfather was and Dad and brother are firefighters. One thing I've learned: One of the first thing that happens in a fire is that the power goes out. Poof.

[_Jim]

One of the first thing that happens in a fire is that the power goes out.

Are you saying that someone 'pulls the meter'?

THAT IS the *only* way to be safe ...

[Cagey]

I was a firefighter for close to 10 years and it's not true that the electricity is always out during a fire.

And when pulling up to the scene of a fire, firefighters don't walk around the building in the dark with flashlights reading signs. The scene is assesed and if an entry is advisable, firefighters will enter the building. Who knows what these warning signs looked like? They could have been written on a cocktail napkin.