Thursday, August 28, 2008
Fraternity Row
By Ed Comeau
High fire death rates in off-campus and Greek housing have fire departments and universities taking a closer look at the retrofit issue....
Americans React Incorrectly to Fire
A nationwide survey conducted by the Society for Fire Protection Engineers reveals Americans' first reactions to fire could place them in greater danger....
Know Your Enemy, Then Open Negotiations
By Azarang "Ozzie" Mirkhah
Our real enemies are those who allow buildings to be built with little regard for the occupants' safety and even less regards for the firefighters' safety....
Alcohol-Impaired Young Adults Less Likely to Wake to Emergency Alarms
The effectiveness of most sounding alarms decreased when individuals were alcohol impaired and asleep; alternative non-sounding methods also were found not to be effective for waking this group....
NFPA: Sounding Alarms Effective for Moderately Hearing Impared
Based on the study, the overall single best option for alerting people with mild to moderately severe hearing loss are low-frequency square-wave auditory signaling devices, which surpass bed shakers, pillow shakers and strobe lights when presented alone....
SFPE: 'Americans React Incorrectly to Fire'
Only 28% of respondents answered that they would evacuate when asked, “If there were a fire in your building, what would be your first action?” This is compared to the 39% of respondents who said they would call the fire department....
North Charleston Receives NFPA Pub-Ed Honor
The department will use the $5,000 award to support its ongoing Smoke Alarm Assistance Program, which aims to reduce the home fire death and injury rates in the community by identifying areas at the highest risk for residential fires and providing smoke alarm inspection and installation in these areas. ...
Register with Junior Firefighter Program
The National Volunteer Fire Council and Spartan Motors have teamed to create the National Junior Firefighter Program. This program will allow young people the opportunity to learn about their local fire, rescue and EMS organization in a safe, controlled, educational and fun environment. ...
Reaching Out
By Rick Markley, Editor
A new survey shows how far fire departments are reaching into their communities to teach fire prevention....
Market Research
Targeted messages and outside-the-box ideas will increase mass appeal for prevention, says Washington DNR educator Sandra Williams....
NFA Adds Off-Campus Fire Prevention Courses
The three one-day courses strongly emphasize the roles of fire research, product safety testing, fire safety standards, and computerized fire modeling for safety in the built environment. ...
DHS Awards Almost $4 Million in Fire Prevention Grants
DHS will award approximately 300 awards totaling $27 million to fire departments and other eligible organizations to reduce losses from fire and fire-related hazards. ...
Sprinkler Association Hosts Free Webcast
The program, hosted by Ronny Coleman, will feature information about how residential sprinkler systems work, including special topics such as installation costs; designing systems to work with tanks, wells and small water meters; and installation of systems in freezing climates....
USFA Selects Arson Awareness Week Theme
The goal of “Vehicle Arson: Who Pays for this Crime?” is to expand the resources and support necessary to reduce this crime by drawing people's attention to the statistics about vehicle arson....
Herskowitz Wins 2007 NVFC Fire Prevention Award
The National Volunteer Fire Council presented the 2007 Fire Prevention Award to Kimberly Herskowitz during an awards banquet on March 30. Herskowitz is the fire prevention officer for the Neffsville Volunteer Community Fire Company in Lancaster County, Pa., a position she has held since August 2006. ...
Teen CERT Training Earns National Approval
The program is designed to "change the culture of disaster preparedness and response by empowering youth in disaster mitigation.”...
Fire Corps Releases New Citizen Corps Toolkits
This toolkit, created specifically for Citizen Corps Councils, includes a sample letter introducing a local fire or EMS chief to the Fire Corps program, as well as a starter kit with the tools and resources needed to start and implement a program locally. ...
Oregon Seeks to Ban Novelty Lighters
Oregon State Fire Marshal Nancy Orr is leading a nationwide effort in calling for the Consumer Product Safety Commission to prohibit the sale and distribution of novelty lighters, which resemble toy versions of such common items as cell phones and footballs....
Firewise Communities Now 211-Strong
In its fifth year, Firewise Communities/USA now recognizes 211 communities in 33 states for their wildfire mitigation efforts. ...
NFPA Study Finds Improvement, More Need
Despite modest progress, three-fifths to three-fourths of the nation’s fire departments still do not have enough fire stations or the firefighters to staff them, to achieve widely recognized response-time guidelines and lack key equipment, prevention programs and training. ...
Sarbanes Award Goes to Cumberland Valley
The Congressional Fire Services Institute and the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation have selected the Cumberland Valley Volunteer Firemen's Association for the Sen. Paul S. Sarbanes Fire Safety Leadership Award....
What About Fire?
By Janet Wilmoth, Editorial Director
What if the White House called a last-minute press conference? Imagine President George W. Bush standing at the podium before the media and stating: "Tonight, I am issuing an order mandating every fire and emergency department in the United States to review and reinforce their citizen education programs for their community." ...
Firewise Awards Seek WUI Leaders
The National Firewise Communities Program is launching its second annual awards program to recognize outstanding efforts to promote a cooperative approach to reducing the loss of lives, property, and resources in the wildland/urban interface. ...
Who's in Charge?
By Janet Wilmoth, Editorial Director
In the past 12 months, there have been 33 separate fires in the United States that involved two or more fatalities. Eleven of the 33 fires killed four or more people. In the past four months alone, nine people were killed in one catastrophic fire, 10 people in another two separate fires, and 12 people died in another....
Campus Firewatch Hosts Roundtable
The one-day educational program focused on methods for improving fire safety for students at college campuses nationwide....
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