Privacy Policy

Who We Are

The Brookline Fire Protection District ("the District") is a public governmental entity located in Missouri. This Privacy Policy describes how we handle information on our website.

Information We Collect

This website has one form: the message form on our Contact page. It is provided by Google, and how it works is described under The Contact Form below. Nothing else on the site asks you for personal information. The following types of information may be processed when you use this site:

Information You Provide

If you contact the District by email or phone using the contact details listed on this website, or through the message form on our Contact page, you are voluntarily providing your contact information to us. That information is used only to respond to your inquiry.

Information Collected Automatically

Like most websites, this site keeps a server log of the requests it receives. For each request, the following is recorded automatically:

• The IP address the request came from
• The date and time of the request
• The page or file requested, and whether it was delivered successfully
• The browser and operating system reported by your device
• The page that referred you, if you arrived by following a link
• For the clicks described in the next section, a short description of what was clicked

These logs are used only to keep the site working, to understand which information residents are looking for, and to identify technical problems or abuse. They are not used to build a profile of you, and they are not combined with any other information about you.

Logs are automatically and permanently deleted after 90 days. Access to them is restricted to District administrators.

Which Links and Buttons Are Clicked

Some of the things you can click never produce a request to our server, so they do not appear in the log described above: tapping our phone number or email address, following a link to our Facebook page, or opening one of the questions in a list of frequently asked questions. So that we can tell which information residents are actually looking for, the site records those clicks as well.

It does this by asking your browser for a small invisible image from our own web address, with a short description of what was clicked added to the end of that address. The request is then written to the same server log as everything else. What gets recorded is the page you were on, the kind of thing you clicked, and the name or destination of the link or button — for example, that somebody reading the Contact page tapped the District’s phone number.

This is done entirely by the District, on the District’s own website. No other company is involved and none receives the information. Nothing is stored on your device, and no identifier is created that would let us recognize you on a later visit or follow you to any other website. What is written down is deleted after 90 days along with the rest of the log.

If your browser sends a Global Privacy Control or Do Not Track signal, this recording is switched off for you completely. It also does nothing at all if JavaScript is turned off in your browser. Apart from the contact form described below, which is provided by Google and cannot be sent without JavaScript, no part of this website needs JavaScript in order to work; our email address and phone number work either way.

Our website loads fonts from Google Fonts (fonts.googleapis.com). When your browser requests these fonts, Google may collect your IP address and browser information in accordance with Google's Privacy Policy (opens in new tab). The District does not control Google's data practices.

We do not use cookies, third-party analytics services, advertising, or any form of cross-site tracking on this website. Apart from the Google Fonts request described above and the contact form described below, nothing on this site reports your visit to any other company.

One small value is saved in your own browser's storage, recording that you have closed the privacy notice at the foot of the page. It exists only so that notice does not reappear every time you open a page. It never leaves your device, it is not sent to the District or to anyone else, and clearing your browsing data removes it.

Facebook Posts on Our Home Page

Our home page shows recent posts from our Facebook page as plain text. The District collects that text in advance and serves it from this website, so reading it sends nothing to Facebook and Facebook is not told that you visited.

No part of this website loads content from Facebook into your browser. The home page used to display a live Facebook feed, which did report every visitor to Facebook; it has been removed. The only way this site takes you to Facebook is the link to our page, and only if you choose to click it.

The Contact Form

The message form on our Contact page is a Google Form. It comes from Google and loads as part of that page, without any action on your part. When it loads, your browser connects directly to Google, and Google may receive your IP address, information about your device, and the fact that you visited the Contact page. This happens whether or not you fill in the form, and whether or not you have a Google account. What Google does with that information is governed by Google's Privacy Policy (opens in new tab) rather than this one.

If you send a message, what you type is delivered to the District through Google and handled the same way as an email to us, as described under How We Use Information below. Messages sent to the District may be subject to Missouri public records law.

No other page on this website contains the form. If you would rather Google not know you visited, our email address and phone number are at the foot of every page, so you can reach us without opening the Contact page at all.

How We Use Information

Any information you voluntarily provide to the District (such as via email) is used solely to respond to your request and to carry out the District's public safety mission. We do not sell, trade, or share your personal information with third parties, except as required by Missouri public records law.

Missouri Sunshine Law

As a Missouri governmental entity, the District is subject to the Missouri Sunshine Law (RSMo Chapter 610). Communications sent to the District may be considered public records and subject to disclosure upon request, unless a specific statutory exemption applies.

Third-Party Links

This website contains links to third-party websites (such as social media platforms, member portals, and resource sites). The District is not responsible for the privacy practices of those websites. We encourage you to review the privacy policies of any third-party sites you visit.

Children's Privacy

This website is not directed at children under the age of 13 and we do not knowingly collect personal information from children.

Security

The District takes reasonable precautions to protect information from unauthorized access or disclosure. However, no method of internet transmission is completely secure.

Contact Us

If you have questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact us:

• Email: info@brooklinefpd.com
• Phone: 417-771-7570
• Mail: Brookline Fire Protection District, 3504 E Orr St, Brookline, MO 65619

Changes to This Policy

We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. Changes will be posted on this page with an updated effective date.