Study Highlights Issues Challenging the U.S. Fire Service

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Study Highlights Issues Challenging the U.S. Fire Service

Firehouse.Com News

A recent survey commissioned by the ISO and conducted by the Opinion Research Corporation of Princeton, N.J. highlighted issues challenging the nation's fire service: the foremost being need for more firefighters.

"The survey helps ISO -- along with property/casualty insurance companies and the firefighting community -- gain further insights into key issues in fire departments across the country," Mike Waters, ISO's vice president of Risk Decision Services, said in a statement.

"We hope the results of the study will highlight the critical challenges facing fire chiefs as they manage their limited resources."

Recruitment and the ability to train recruits for volunteer and combination departments was another issue revealed in the study. Among the chiefs of volunteer and combination departments, 93 percent said that the biggest challenge surrounding recruitment is the time commitment. The chiefs also cited a small volunteer pool (84 percent) and education and training requirements (83 percent) as key challenges.

"This survey points out the need to understand the actual situation on the ground when evaluating fire protection at a particular location," Waters said. "It's not enough to know there's a fire station nearby. You also have to know if the station will respond to a possible fire and if there will be enough trained personnel, adequate equipment, and sufficient water for firefighting, among other things."

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