MANCHESTER, N.H. – Beginning May 1, one of the longest-running systems of public safety in city history will officially conclude.
The Manchester Fire Department will decommission the Municipal Master Box Fire Alarm System, a network that has alerted the Fire Department to emergencies since September 6, 1872. Using the patented Gamewell design, the original network held 22 signal boxes, and 15 miles of wire along with other materials that provided points of access where individuals could activate fire emergency signals at then significant buildings such as Stearns’ Hotel, Blood’s Shop, Namaske Mills and elsewhere.
Existing Gamewell master boxes had been expected to cost a fee of $2,500 for the calendar year of 2026 and $5,000 for calendar year 2027 or until decommission had been completed.
Manchester has now fully commissioned the AES-IntelliNet Mesh Network, which costs building owners a fee of $540 per calendar year, or a $45 per month pro-rated amount if installed during a calendar year.
Property owners with questions are encouraged to contact the Manchester Fire Department’s Fire Communications Division at 603-669-2256, Option 3.
