For more than 20 years, the Life Safety Achievement Award has recognized fire departments across the United States for actively promoting fire prevention in the pursuit of saving lives. In the summer of 2012, 50 fire departments earned this award for their fire prevention accomplishments in 2011. The Life Safety Achievement award is sponsored through the partnership of the National Association of State Fire Marshals Fire Research and Education Foundation (NASFM Foundation) and Grinnell Mutual Reinsurance Company.
“Many fire deaths are preventable. At Grinnell Mutual, we are glad to support the Life Safety Achievement Award because it recognizes and encourages fire departments to reach out to their local communities with life safety programs. These programs save lives,” said Alan Clark, the Assistant Vice President of Special Investigations at Grinnell Mutual. Within Grinnell Mutual’s 12-state writing territory throughout the Midwest, 24 fire departments earned the Life Safety Achievement Award for 2011.
According to the National Fire Protection Association, in 2011, 1,389,500 fires were reported in the United States, which caused more than 3,000 civilian deaths, 17,500 civilian injuries, and $11.7 billion in property damage. “Given the losses we see nationwide from fire, the efforts of the fire departments recognized by the Life Safety Achievement Award are a significant contribution to the safety of their communities,” said J. William Degnan, President of the NASFM Foundation.
To qualify for the award, fire departments must record zero fire deaths in residential structures or a 10 percent reduction of fire deaths from the prior year. In addition, they must demonstrate commitment to prevent residential fires in their local communities through active and effective fire prevention programs. The applicants also must present evidence by some measure (department-determined) that the department’s fire prevention efforts increased over the previous year and made a positive impact.
The fire prevention efforts of award-winning fire departments include educational programs in schools, senior centers, local businesses and community events; open houses at the fire station; smoke alarm giveaways and installations; inspections and pre-incident surveys, and efforts to increase fire sprinklers in occupancies. “The common threads that we see in departments that are effective at minimizing fire loss are that they analyze their community’s fire problems and risks, and then determine the specific actions necessary,” said Jim Narva, the NASFM Foundation’s Executive Director. “They also try to reach as many audiences as possible, through a variety of media, frequent interactions and creative programs.”
“The resources spent ‘preventing’ a fire or significantly reducing its impact are far better dollars to spend than having to respond after a fact when a fire has occurred,” added Narva. “We are not suggesting less funding for the suppression efforts, but rather increased funding for prevention activities.”
The 2011 Life Safety Achievement Award Recipients named in the summer of 2012 include:
Alabama
Tuscaloosa Fire and Rescue Service, Tuscaloosa, AL
Florida
Clermont Fire Department, Clermont, FL
Illinois
Woodstock Fire Rescue District, Woodstock, IL
Iowa
Bettendorf Fire Rescue, Bettendorf, IA
Cedar Rapids Fire Department, Cedar Rapids, IA
City of West Burlington Fire Department, West Burlington, IA
Marion Fire Department, Marion, IA
Sioux City Fire Rescue, Sioux City, IA
Kansas
Derby Fire Department, Derby, KS
Louisiana
Bossier City Fire Department, Bossier City, LA
Garyville Volunteer Fire Department, Garyville, LA
Grayson Volunteer Fire Department, Grayson, LA
Hammond Fire Prevention Bureau, Hammond, LA
Lafitte-Barataria-Crown Point Volunteer Fire Department, Lafitte, LA
New Iberia Fire Department, New Iberia, LA
Paulina Grand Point Belmont VFD, Paulina, LA
Schriever Volunteer Fire Department, Schriever, LA
St. Tammany Fire District #6, Covington, LA
Sulphur Fire Department, Sulphur, LA
Maryland
Winfield & Community Volunteer Fire Department, Sykesville, MD
Minnesota
Alexandria Fire Department, Alexandria, MN
Bird Island Fire Department, Bird Island, MN
City of Hastings Fire Department, Hastings, MN
City of White Bear Lake Fire Department, White Bear Lake, MN
Minnetonka Fire Department, Minnetonka, MN
Missouri
Battlefield Fire Protection District, Battlefield, MO
Bethany Fire Department, Bethany, MO
Boles Fire Protection District, Labadie, MO
Columbia Fire Department, Columbia, MO
Eureka Fire Protection District, Eureka, MO
Fort Osage Fire Protection District, Buckner, MO
Nixa Fire Protection District, Nixa, MO
Western Taney Co. Fire Protection District, Branson, MO
Nevada
Federal Fire Department, Naval Air Station Fallon, NAS Fallon, NV
New Hampshire
Barnstead Fire-Rescue, Barnstead, NH
City of Rochester Fire Department, Rochester, NH
New Jersey
Maplewood Fire Department, Maplewood, NJ
Medford Farm Fire Company, Tabernacle, NJ
North Wildwood Fire Department, North Wildwood, NJ
North Carolina
City of Henderson Fire Department, Henderson, NC
Dallas Volunteer Fire Department, Dallas, NC
North Carolina Guil-Rand Fire Department, Archdale, NC
West Iredell Volunteer Fire Department, Statesville, NC
Ohio
Concord Township Fire Department, Concord Township, OH
Tennessee
Franklin Fire Department, Franklin, TN
Texas
Highland Village Fire Department, Highland Village, TX
Wisconsin
City of Janesville Fire Department, Janesville, WI
Hudson Fire Department, Hudson, WI
Stanley Fire Department, Stanley, WI
Sun Prairie Volunteer Fire Department, Sun Prairie, WI
Grinnell Mutual Reinsurance Company, located in Grinnell, Iowa, provides reinsurance for farm mutual insurance companies and property and casualty insurance products for homeowners, farmowners and businessowners through a network of over 1,600 independent agents in 12 Midwestern states. In its 103rd year of business, Grinnell Mutual is the 129th largest property-casualty insurance company in the United States and the largest primary farm mutual reinsurer in North America. http://www.grinnellmutual.com/.
The National Association of State Fire Marshals Fire Research and Education Foundation (NASFM Foundation), a 501(c)(3) organization, works with companies, government agencies, associations, academic institutions and others that strive to achieve higher levels of fire safety for consumers and for the emergency response community. The NASFM Foundation works to support the mission of the National Association of State Fire Marshals — to protect life, property and the environment from fire and related hazards — through science, innovation, research and education. www.firemarshals.org/NASFMFoundation
