“Safety from fire should not be a topic for discussion during only one or two weeks of the year. It is definitely a year-round public responsibility. I believe that the highest state and municipal officials must assume greater responsibility for leadership in this field. We in the federal government can give aid within the framework of existing agencies. But the impetus must come from the states and from every community and every individual in the land.”
These words, which were spoken by President Harry Truman as he opened the Conference on Fire Prevention on May 5, 1947, are as true today as they were back then. Fire prevention is an everyday action, not just a once-a-year event, that must be taken seriously by every fire chief and fire department in this nation. What’s more, fire prevention has a direct connection to the safety and survival of your members, not just the public you are sworn to protect.
Critical initiatives
Most firefighters are familiar with the 16 Firefighter Life Safety Initiatives, which were developed by representatives of the major fire service constituencies at a Firefighter Safety Summit in 2004. Since then, the LSIs have been used to inform fire service safety culture at all levels, from individual fire departments to federal programs.
The LSIs range cover a variety of safety topics, from culture change to apparatus design.
From my perspective, LSI 14 – Public Education and 15 – Code Enforcement & Sprinklers are the most overlooked of the initiatives. While several reasons could be presented as to why an old-school “tailboard firefighter” might not relate to these two LSIs as much as they do to the others on the list, nonetheless, LSIs 14 and LSI 15 are, in fact, just as important as the others, if not more so.
- LSI 14: “Public education must receive more resources and be championed as a critical fire and life safety program.”
- LSI 15: “Advocacy must be strengthened for the enforcement of codes and the installation of home fire sprinklers.”
Unsung heroes
But, some might ask, how can these two LSI be that important when they don’t directly impact the fire suppression and life-saving efforts of our line firefighters? First, the question is rooted in a flawed premise, because the individuals who work in fire prevention and fire code enforcement save more lives in your community than anyone who rides on a fire apparatus ever will. Sure, some dramatic and heroic things take place when you’re crawling into an immediately dangerous to life and health environment to “slay the dragon” and save the baby from the clutches of death. But have you ever had to face a classroom of preschoolers or kindergarteners and keep their interest? Or have you ever had to face off with a developer who thinks all regulations are imposed by communist governments and you are one of their “Brownshirts” because you want them to install a fire alarm system or retrofit their building with fire sprinklers? While the former example is shared somewhat in jest, the reality is that fire inspectors must work with all members of the community, even those who are hard to reach, to ensure their safety.
Those fire prevention personnel, my friends, are the real heroes of the American fire service. Don’t get me wrong. I do not mean to disrespect or diminish the actions of line firefighters and what they do unselfishly and without hesitation every day. What I am saying is that the work of fire prevention and codes officials have a significant and far-reaching impact on the entire community.
Better people than me have spoken about the importance of fire prevention and code administration for a very long time. These comments can be traced back not only to the Truman administration but also the Wingspread conferences, the “American Burning” report, and several other fire safety conference, documents and programs. Additionally, Vision 20/20 is continuing the push to reduce fires in the United States through its Community Risk Reduction programs. This group works to promote fire prevention and fire safety on the front end so firefighters don’t have to attack an actual fire on the back end.
Circling back
Bringing it all together, let’s ask ourselves why Public Education and Code Enforcement & Sprinklers are part of the 16 Firefighter LSIs. Quite simply, if we educate our citizens about not having a fire in the first place, it’s less likely our firefighters will be put in harm’s way by an uncontrolled fire. The LSIs are designed to make sure that the health, wellness, safety and survival of our members is paramount in everything we do. We can better deliver our service every day by making sure that our folks return home when their duty is done. And whether we lead a paid or volunteer department, our responsibility as a chief officer is our members’ welfare.
The question now shifts to the chief officers themselves: Are we failing our community and our firefighters by focusing on big red trucks speeding to fires rather than saving people by insisting on the installation of automatic fire sprinklers, fire alarm systems and smoke detectors?
Final thoughts
Fire prevention, fire codes and automatic fire suppression systems are not going to put a fire department out of business. Accidental fires will still happen. But we can put ourselves in a better position by making sure our members’ lives aren’t put at greater risk over something that could have been taken care of through LSI 14 and LSI 15. So, the next time you hold your fire department awards ceremony, consider giving those life safety awards to the fire inspectors and fire prevention personnel. And if you get the opportunity, go hug a fire inspector today – or at least say thank you. The next life they save may be yours.
