At the car show Revin’ in the Heights Sept. 13, Madison Heights Fire Chief Gregory Lelito, left, and Deputy Fire Chief Ray Gilson, right, awarded the Fire Chief’s Pick trophy to a 1924 Prospect Fire Truck that Tim Toepel brought to the show. Holding the award is Tim Burns, a city attorney for Madison Heights and one of the show’s sponsors.
By: Andy Kozlowski | Madison-Park News | Published September 29, 2025
MADISON HEIGHTS — Every second counts when a home is on fire or a loved one is having a medical crisis. That’s why the Madison Heights Fire Department is promoting a new program called Community Connect, where residents and businesses can share information ahead of time that can help during an emergency.
To use the program, visit the city’s official website, madison-heights.org, and then click on the tab for the Fire Department. Community Connect is the first item selectable there.
Billed as a “secure, user-friendly platform,” Community Connect allows residents and business owners alike to voluntarily submit any information they feel may help firefighters and paramedics during a rescue.
For example, maybe there is a person at the address who has limited mobility or dementia, which could complicate extricating them from the home.
Telling the Fire Department where the kids sleep in the house or whether there are pets kept in crates in a specific room can also aid in their rescue during a fire or other emergency. Community Connect even accepts photos of pets to help first responders quickly identify them.
The department would also like to know whether the property has sprinklers and whether the family has designated meeting places, as well as the contact information for other family and friends who can be reached during an emergency.
In addition, any hazardous materials onsite — such as potential combustibles — can also be documented, helping first responders safely work around them.
The information shared at the website is kept strictly confidential, secured with password-protected logins using bank-level encryption.
“As soon as the run is created by our dispatch center, the information comes up on our computers on every response vehicle, which includes the information in Community Connect,” Madison Heights Fire Chief Gregoy Lelito said.
“This allows us to be much more intentional and targeted with our actions when we arrive,” added Nate Figueroa, the city’s fire marshal. “From a medical standpoint, having that extra bit of knowledge can help gear our thought process for what may be going on. Same with a fire — knowing where people sleep (in the home) helps us save time as we’re rolling up.”
Figueroa explained that the program is part of a robust software package that the department recently adopted.
Lelito said he is aware of only one other city currently using Community Connect in the metro Detroit area: Shelby Township.
“But there are more departments talking about it,” Lelito said. “When using it, people can share as much or as little as they want.”
Madison Heights City Councilman Quinn Wright said he encourages residents to take advantage of the program, especially those with special needs and those who have children or elderly residents in the house.
“It could save lives in the long run,” Wright said. “Information is critical in an emergency. Having that information ahead of time and using this technology to help our residents is a great example of making the most of our resources and putting our taxpayers’ dollars to good use.”
Wright noted that the database could also be useful in situations where a member of the household might have a mental condition that makes them less cooperative, preparing first responders to handle them safely.
“My hat’s off to the men and women who go out on (emergency) runs in the community, because they truly don’t know what they have to face, and the agility they need is tremendous,” Wright said. “The more we can help them, the better off we will all be.”
Madison Heights Mayor Roslyn Grafstein echoed this sentiment.
“I want to thank our Madison Heights Fire Department for always putting residents first,” Grafstein said via email. “Their new Community Connect program is another example of how they go above and beyond. … I encourage everyone in the community to sign up and take part.”