By Tim Kreis and Jeff Case
The American Fire Service is doing some amazing and significant work for the communities they serve. The further we unlock the true impact of our trade, the more encouraged we become with regard to our innovation and efficiency. The time to move aggressively in the direction of return-on-investment and provide fire departments with the tools to defend and enhance their ability to serve is now.
A new report conducted by Arizona State University examines the economic impact of the Phoenix (AZ) Fire Department on non-residential fire incidents.
This study uses a REMI model to estimate the economic impact of the City of Phoenix Fire Department’s successful intervention at 42 fires, June 1, 2012 to May 31, 2013, affecting fifty-one commercial businesses or organizations.
Tactical Fire Objectives for Commercial Occupancies
Approximately 6,951 total private non-farm jobs could have been lost in the State of Arizona over the course of one year if the Phoenix Fire Department had not successfully intervened at the 42 commercial fires studied. If government and farm sector employment is included, the total impact could increase to 7,446 jobs over the course of just one year in the State of Arizona. Maricopa County, as the host county, could suffer most of the estimated job losses, including 3,023 full-time direct jobs.
Gross state product could be lower by almost $650 million (2012 $) throughout the State of Arizona, and real disposable personal income by $295.6 million (2012 $), without the Phoenix Fire Department’s successful interventions at these commercial fires. State tax revenues could also fall by over $35 million (2012 $) throughout the state if the commercial fires had not been extinguished.
The City of Phoenix Fire Department is therefore estimated to exert a significant impact on the local economy at both a state and county level over a 12-month time horizon, exclusively based on their successful commercial fire interventions. With successful commercial fire interventions accounting for only three percent. of the City of Phoenix Fire Department’s annual workload, the study estimates are in all probability a conservative measure of the fire department’s total annual economic impact for Maricopa County and the State of Arizona.
Download the entire report HERE (354 KB).
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