The National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) and the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) have teamed up to develop a guide to assist departments in understanding and implementing NFPA standards. Understanding and Implementing Standards examines three major NFPA standards relating to safety and health and offers clarification, identifies manageable steps, and highlights available resources to help departments reach their safety goals. Information regarding the standards making process is also provided.
The guide breaks down the following standards:
- 1500 Standard on Fire Department Occupational Safety and Health Program
- 1720 Standard for the Organization and Deployment of Fire Suppression Operations, Emergency Medical Operations and Special Operations to the Public by Volunteer Fire Departments
- 1851 Standard on Selection, Care, and Maintenance of Protective Ensembles for Structural Fire Fighting and Proximity Fire Fighting
In addition to the guide, the NVFC has created an online resource center highlighting documents and tools that can assist a department in implementing these standards. The resource center also promotes the sharing of best practices by providing sample SOPs/SOGs and first hand accounts from departments who have implemented the standards.