In 2007, there were 25 more large-loss (property damage of at least $5 million) fires than in 2006, according to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) report Large-Loss Fires in the United States 2007. This represents an increase of more than 54 percent (71 fires in 2007 vs. 46 fires in 2006).
Among other key findings noted in the report are the following:
- Large-loss fires killed 19 civilians and injured 168 firefighters and 67 civilians.
- These fires resulted in $3.5 billion in direct property loss in 2007; total fire property loss for 2007 was $14.6 billion.
- Most of the increase in dollar loss in 2007 resulted from the Southern California Firestorm. This fire was one of 20 fires that caused more than $20 million in property damage and was one of five that caused a loss of more than $100 million.
Line-of-Duty Deaths
October 13. Firefighter William Joseph Miller, 24, Blue Mound (IL) Fire Department: unknown, investigation ongoing.
October 16. Paramedic-Firefighter Brian D. Neville, 32, Baltimore County (MD) Fire Department: cause unknown.
October 29. Firefighter Adam Cody Renfroe, 24, Crossville (AL) Fire Department: perished inside the fire structure while searching for victims.
November 3. Fire Police Officer Wayne Brown, 63, Bristol (RI) Fire and Rescue Department: cause of death undetermined.
Source: USFA Firefighters Memorial Database
USFA and NIST complete thermal imaging study
Technical Note 1499, Performance Metrics for Fire Fighting Thermal Imaging CamerasSmall- and Full-Scale Experiments, presents research conducted by the United States Fire Administration (USFA) and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) on thermal imaging cameras (TICs). Imaging performing metrics (on image contrast, effective temperature range, resolution, and thermal sensitivity); test methods; and science-based information and national standards, including National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 1801, Standard on Thermal Imagers for the Fire Service, are included. The Department of Homeland Security’s Science and Technology Directorate funded the report.
U.S. Fire Administrator Greg Cade explains: “This research partnership has developed critical information to support the development of a national standard on thermal imaging technology that previously did not exist, which will enhance the safety of our nation’s firefighters.”
A variety of commercially available TICs were assessed in the laboratory and in full-scale burns. The research also explored new technology that might enhance the performance of future thermal imaging devices and provide ways to incorporate new technology into enhanced infrared cameras. Differential resolution, thermal exposure, performance during suppression, and ease of use were also evaluated. This project complemented existing NIST-funded research related to developing a standard on thermal imaging technology. Thermal Imaging Research Needs for First Responders: Workshop Proceedings was previously published as part of this study.
These reports can be downloaded, free of charge, from the USFA (www.USFA.dhs.gov) and NIST (www.NIST.gov) Web sites. Information about this partnership effort can be found under the Research section of the USFA Web site.
NFA announces 2009 classes
The National Fire Academy’s (NFA) Fiscal Year 2009 second semester application period opened on November 1 and includes classes that run from April 1 through September 30, 2009. A Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) general admission application Form 75-5 should be submitted as soon as possible. Application information is available at http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/nfa/about/index.shtm/. The NFA course schedule is at http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/applications/nfacsd/.
Additionally, the NFA recommends that applicants read Eight Tips for Completing a Successful NFA Application before filling out the FEMA Form 75-5 application. The document can be downloaded from http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/nfa/about/attend/apply.shtm/. Specific questions can be submitted by clicking the “Contact Us” link at the top of the sites listed above.
USFA forms partnership with the Lessons Learned Information Sharing Network
The United States Fire Administration (USFA) has formed a partnership with the Lessons Learned Information Sharing Network (LLIS.gov), the national network of lessons learned, best practices, innovative ideas, and preparedness information for homeland security and emergency response professionals. LLIS.gov, a repository for information, also serves as a network that enables homeland security and emergency response professionals from across the country to share their knowledge and expertise in a secure, online environment, according to the USFA.
LLIS.gov members can access the USFA Resource Page for USFA technical and special reports, related LLIS.gov original content, featured documents, and valuable links at LLIS.gov and then click on “US Fire Administration Resource Page” under “LLIS.GOV PARTNERS.”
DHS simplifies grant process for localities, issues 2009 grant guidance
Local officials will find it easier to apply for a Department of Homeland Security (DHS) security grant for the 2009 $3 billion counterterrorism grant program. According to an article by Spencer S. Hsu, Washington Post staff writer, state and local agencies seeking grants will have “far fewer strings attached than in past years.” The states and agencies had been requesting modifications for some time.
The following modifications of the program were also made:
- Recipients were advised months earlier of the total amount of funding Congress mandated for the states and 62 designated high-risk cities.
- Recipients can also do the following: spend up to 50 percent of homeland security grants for personnel expenses, up from 25 percent; ease a 25 percent local-match requirement for rail, transit, and port security aid; and lift a three-year limit on funding for intelligence analysts in law enforcement “fusion” centers, which police chiefs nationwide have requested. “Security Grants to Have Fewer Requirements: DHS Eases Rules Amid Criticism from Struggling Local Officials,” Washington Post, November 6, 2008.
DHS released in November guidance pertaining to applications for the more than $3 billion funding program for states and local governments. Information on the preparedness grant programs is at www.dhs.gov and www.fema.gov/grants/.
NFPA codes and standards development process meets SAFETY Act criteria
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS), in September, designated the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) codes and standards development process as a “Qualified Anti-Terrorism Technology” (QATT) under the Support Anti-terrorism by Fostering Effective Technologies Act of 2002 (SAFETY Act). NFPA’s codes and standards development process was also certified as an “Approved Product for Homeland Security.”
Designation as a QATT and certification as an approved product for homeland security under the SAFETY Act provide legal protection for the NFPA codes and standards development process as applied to antiterrorism. Federal protections under the DHS Designation and Certification are retroactive; the NFPA’s technology will be protected from its “first date of sale,” September 11, 2001.
USFA highway vehicle fires report released
An estimated 258,500 highway vehicle fires occur annually, resulting in 490 civilian deaths, 1,275 civilian injuries, and $1 billion in property loss,” according to the United States Fire Administration’s (USFA) Highway Vehicle Fires. The document, part of the USFA’s Topical Fire Report Series, was developed by the USFA’s National Fire Data Center and is based on 2004 to 2006 data from the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS).
The report also noted the following:
- 84 percent of highway vehicle fires occur in passenger vehicles;
- the leading causes of highway vehicle fires are accidental (29 percent) and failure of equipment (28 percent); and
- 62 percent of these fires originate in the vehicle’s engine, running gear, or wheel areas.
The report can be downloaded at http://www.usfa.dhs.gov/statistics/reports/index.shtm/.
Federal rule will make it easier to make school buses safer
New federal rules will mandate higher seat backs, lap and shoulder belts on small school buses, and set safety standards for seat belts on large school buses, according to U.S. Secretary of Transportation Mary E. Peters.
The new rule requires that all new U.S. school buses be equipped with 24-inch-high seat backs; the current requirement is 20-inch-high seat backs. The higher seat backs, Peters explained, will help prevent taller and heavier children from being thrown over the seat in a crash.
In addition, all new school buses weighing less than five tons will be required to have three-point seat belts. New standards for seat belts on large school buses will be specified. Peters announced also that the federal government would now allow school districts to use federal highway safety funds to pay for the cost of installing belts.
NFA to issue CEUs for on-campus courses
On October 1, 2008, the United States Fire Administration began issuing continuing education units (CEUs) to students attending courses on the National Fire Academy (NFA) campus in Emmitsburg, Maryland.
Students who attend NFA on-campus classes designated with an “R” will receive from 5.0 to 8.0 CEUs for each course. The number of CEUs depends on course length. The CEUs will be printed on the student’s end-of-course certificate. CEUs cannot be granted for on-campus courses taken before October 1, 2008.
Earlier this year, the NFA began issuing CEUs for its online Coffee Break Training, available at NFA Online (www.nfaonline.dhs.gov). Direct questions about the CEU program to Stacey Harmon, instructional systems specialist, at (301) 447-1624 or Stacey.A.Harmon@dhs.gov.
2009 Harvard Fire Executive Fellowship applications due February 2009
Eight senior fire executives will be awarded fellowships to attend Harvard’s annual “Program for Senior Executives in State and Local Government.” The three-week program will be held June 7-26 and July 5-24, 2009. Fellows must be available to attend either session.
The program will provide the tuition. Applicants are responsible for travel costs to the final interview process in Emmitsburg, Maryland and, if selected, also to Cambridge. The National Emergency Training Center in Emmitsburg will provide housing for the interview process in April 2009. Fellows are expected to continue their professional contributions to fire and emergency services in light of their state and local program experience.
The application form and directions for applying are available at http://ksgexecprogram.harvard.edu/download/ksgapp.doc/. School of Government. Application packages postmarked after February 14, 2009, will not be considered.
Direct questions regarding application procedures only to Mary Wingert at the USFA at (301) 447-1085 or (e-mail) mary.wingert@dhs.gov/. Additional information is available at www.usfa.dhs.gov/nfa/harvard/index.shtm or http://ksgexecprogram.harvard.edu/Programs/sl/overview.aspx/.
Near-Miss Reporting System posts 2,000th report
The National Fire Fighter Near-Miss Reporting System posted its 2,000th report to the Web site in October. The report (#08-511) documents a highway incident that has a favorable outcome because the crews maintained situational awareness and employed best practices to avert injury. The report is at www.firefighternearmiss.com/.
IAFC and TV Worldwide launch TV channel for responders
The Internet television channel www.iafctv.org has been established as a worldwide educational resource for fire and emergency service communities. Launched jointly by the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC) and TV Worldwide, it will present newscasts, town hall meetings, IAFC conferences, interviews with fire service leaders, and emergency alerts, according to the IAFC. Additional information is available from Edie Clark, IAFC’s director of communications, at (703) 896-4827 or eclark@iafc.org/.
NFPA hosts Urban Fire Forum
Twenty fire chiefs, including Gregory Cade, U.S. fire administrator and a former chief of the Virginia Beach (VA) Fire Department, participated in the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Urban Fire Forum in Quincy, Massachusetts, in October.
Among topics addressed included fire and life safety challenges in a depressed economy, community/fire service partnering projects directed at the challenges caused by the housing foreclosure crisis, the NFPA-Columbus (Ohio) fire safety project, cultural recruitment, fire-based EMS, multiagency large housing development community projects, incident management, trends in firefighter deaths and injuries, succession planning, wind-driven fires, formulating a fire service legislative strategy, the fire data model/data exchange project, and updates on successful sprinkler installation programs.
Facilitators for this year’s forum were Chief Bill Stewart, Toronto (Ont., Canada) Fire Department and Metropolitan “Metro” Fire Chiefs Association president; Russ Sanders, Metro Chiefs executive secretary and NFPA regional manager; and Curt Varone, NFPA’s director of public fire protection.
MEDICAL PRODUCTS RECALLED
• Mislabeled ReliOn insulin syringes. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has notified health care professionals and patients that Tyco Healthcare Group LP (Covidien) is recalling one lot of ReliOn sterile, single-use, disposable, hypodermic syringes with permanently affixed hypodermic needles, which may be mislabeled. Using these syringes may lead to patients’ receiving an overdose of as much as 2.5 times the intended dose of insulin, which may lead to hypoglycemia, serious health consequences, and even death. Only Lot Number 813900 ReliOn 1cc, 31-gauge, 100 units for use with U-100 insulin is involved; it is labeled as follows: “100 units for use with U-100 insulin.” The syringes, distributed by Can-Am Care Corp., are sold only at Walmart stores and Sam’s Club. Consumers and health care professionals who suspect they have the recalled product may contact Covidien at (866) 780-5436 or www.relion.com/recall/.
• Thoratec Corporation’s HeartMate II Left Ventricular Assist System (HM II LVAS). Damage may occur to the percutaneous lead of all serial numbers of Catalog No. 1355 or 102139, distributed since November 2003. Over time, the company explains: “Wear and fatigue of the percutaneous lead connecting the HeartMate II LVAS blood pump with the system controller may result in damage that could interrupt pump function, which could require reoperation to replace the pump and potentially result in serious injury or death. The estimated probability of the need for pump replacement because of percutaneous lead damage is 1.3 percent at 12 months, 6.5 percent at 24 months, and 11.4 percent at 36 months.” Healthcare professionals with patients supported by a HeartMate II LVAS should assess the wear and fatigue of the percutaneous lead and instruct patients on the management and care of the lead. The entire 2008 MedWatch Safety Summary, including a link to the manufacturer’s press release, is at http://www.fda.gov/medwatch/safety/2008/safety08.htm#HeartMate/.
• ETHEX Corporation: oversized tablets of generic products. A nationwide voluntary recall was initiated for the following generic products because of the potential for oversized tablets and, consequently, overdosing, which may have serious consequences:
- Propafenone HCl Tablets: 150 mg, 225 mg, and 300 mg.
- Isosorbide Mononitrate Extended Release Tablets: 30 mg and 60 mg.
- Morphine Sulfate Extended Release Tablets: 15 mg.
- Morphine Sulfate Immediate Release Tablets: 15 mg and 30 mg.
- Dextroamphetamine Sulfate Tablets: 10 mg.
- Isosorbide Mononitrate Extended Release Tablets: 30 mg and 60 mg.
For lot numbers and additional information concerning these recalls, contact ETHEX Customer Service at (800) 748-1472 or by e-mail at customer-service@ethex.com, Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., CST.
