This didn’t happen this year, nor hasn’t happened in many years, but always good info for new/visiting priests:

• Know how and remember to shut off the fire alarm before going at it with the incense.
• Know how and remember to shut off the regular/intruder alarm before the late Easter vigil mass if it turns on automatically after normal business/weekend hours.
• Have complete instructions on how to turn off alarms as well as the phone numbers handy for fire, police, and the alarm services when you forget to do the first two. Print them and post them right where people will look to turn them off (even if that spot is wrong – post it where someone in a panic would probably look)
• Train your staff and as many key assistants (sacristans, deacons, readers/extraordinary ministers, visiting priests, etc) at each celebration with that same information.
• Do you know how sensitive your smoke detectors are in your parish? Is the alarm system an intruder system, smoke system, or fire suppression heat-activated system?
  • Ensure you know how much it takes to set off the fire suppression system (sprinklers) installed in your parish. Ensure it was designed to handle the levels of incense you want to use.
• Practice it – try a dry run and really incense the place up to see how much smoke it takes to set it off the alarm, how loud it is, how to call the alarm service/fire/police, and then how to turn it off.