by Ed Comeau, Vision 20/20
Community Risk Reduction is a program that is growing in the fire service across the country. Fire departments are reaching out to their communities to teach them about safety before the emergency happens, but there is more that can be done. Vision 20/20 is launching a survey to learn what the challenges that are being faced by communities and fire departments in adopting CRR.
While fire departments have been doing smoke alarm installs and fire safety education for years, what makes CRR different is that it can be a more holistic approach, using all the tools we have for improving public safety in an integrated fashion. While CRR includes everything we do that helps to control call volume and improve public safety, CRR provides an emphasis on home safety visits that have proven results. By going into the homes, showing people how to be safe and installing smoke alarms, fire fighters and our partners are showing the citizens the value of a fire department and helping to manage call volume at the same time.
There are a number of communities that are doing this successfully, but there are others that are facing challenges in implementing a CRR program, and we would like to know more about what these challenges are. Is it resources, time, money, personnel? Are you having difficulty justifying it to your community’s administration or to the fire fighters? What are the hurdles that you face in getting a CRR program off of the ground?
Vision 20/20 is launching a survey to look at these very questions and is reaching out to two important groups – front line firefighters and public education program managers. Both of these groups are key to implementing and the success of a CRR program, and we would like to know more details on what are these challenges so we can develop materials and resources to help overcome them.
The surveys are short, about five minutes, but it is five minutes that can make the world of difference for us. We’ll be sharing the results with everyone and it will help us in creating programs and materials that are more focused on what the fire service needs.
You can find more information on the survey at Vision 20/20, and if you want to take the surveys, click on the links below-and thank you!
Fire Prevention Administrator Survey
