[Senate Hearing 106-1132]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
S. Hrg. 106-1132
S. 1941, A BILL TO AMEND THE FEDERAL FIRE PREVENTION AND CONTROL ACT OF
1974
=======================================================================
HEARING
before the
COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE,
SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION
UNITED STATES SENATE
ONE HUNDRED SIXTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
__________
JULY 25, 2000
__________
Printed for the use of the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation
83-607 U.S. GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE
WASHINGTON : 2003
____________________________________________________________________________
For Sale by the Superintendent of Documents, U.S. Government Printing Office
Internet: bookstore.gpr.gov Phone: toll free (866) 512-1800; (202) 512�091800
Fax: (202) 512�092250 Mail: Stop SSOP, Washington, DC 20402�090001
SENATE COMMITTEE ON COMMERCE, SCIENCE, AND TRANSPORTATION
ONE HUNDRED SIXTH CONGRESS
SECOND SESSION
JOHN McCAIN, Arizona, Chairman
TED STEVENS, Alaska ERNEST F. HOLLINGS, South Carolina
CONRAD BURNS, Montana DANIEL K. INOUYE, Hawaii
SLADE GORTON, Washington JOHN D. ROCKEFELLER IV, West
TRENT LOTT, Mississippi Virginia
KAY BAILEY HUTCHISON, Texas JOHN F. KERRY, Massachusetts
OLYMPIA J. SNOWE, Maine JOHN B. BREAUX, Louisiana
JOHN ASHCROFT, Missouri RICHARD H. BRYAN, Nevada
BILL FRIST, Tennessee BYRON L. DORGAN, North Dakota
SPENCER ABRAHAM, Michigan RON WYDEN, Oregon
SAM BROWNBACK, Kansas MAX CLELAND, Georgia
Mark Buse, Republican Staff Director
Ann Choiniere, Republican General Counsel
Kevin D. Kayes, Democratic Staff Director
Moses Boyd, Democratic Chief Counsel
C O N T E N T S
----------
Page
Hearing held on July 25, 2000.................................... 1
Statement of Senator McCain...................................... 1
Statement of Senator Hollings.................................... 2
Prepared statement........................................... 2
Statement of Senator Kerry....................................... 50
Witnesses
Dodd, Hon. Christopher J., U.S. Senator from Connecticut......... 3
DeWine, Hon. Mike, U.S. Senator from Ohio........................ 7
Prepared statement........................................... 9
Fincher, Jr., Chief Luther L., President, International
Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC).............................. 19
Prepared statement........................................... 21
Monihan, E. James, Former Chairman, Current Director, State of
Delaware, National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC)............... 27
Prepared statement........................................... 29
Pascrell, Jr., Hon. Bill, U.S. Representative from New Jersey.... 10
Prepared statement........................................... 12
Shields, Billy, Vice President, Professional Fire Fighters of
Arizona........................................................ 31
Prepared statement........................................... 33
Weldon, Hon. Curt, U.S. Representative from Pennsylvania......... 15
Whitworth, James H., Chief, Miami Township Fire & Emergency
Medical Service, Clermont County............................... 37
Prepared statement........................................... 39
Appendix
DiPoli, Robert A., Chief, Needham Fire Department, Needham,
Massachusetts, prepared statement.............................. 66
Response to written questions submitted by Hon. John McCain to:
Chief Luther L. Fincher, Jr.................................. 57
E. James Monihan............................................. 58
Billy Shields................................................ 61
Chief James Whitworth........................................ 63
The Proof Is In--Thermal Imagers Save Lives!..................... 67
S. 1941, A BILL TO AMEND THE FEDERAL FIRE PREVENTION AND CONTROL ACT OF
1974
----------
TUESDAY, JULY 25, 2000
U.S. Senate,
Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation,
Washington, DC.
The Committee met, pursuant to notice, at 9:30 a.m. in room
SR-253, Russell Senate Office Building, Hon. John McCain,
Chairman of the Committee, presiding.
Staff members assigned to this hearing: Robert Taylor,
Republican Counsel; Jean Toal Eisen, Democratic Professional
Staff Member.
OPENING STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN McCAIN,
U.S. SENATOR FROM ARIZONA
The Chairman. All right. We will begin, since it is 9:30.
This morning the Committee will hear testimony regarding S.
1941, the Firefighter Investment and Response Enhancement Act.
I welcome my colleagues and look forward to their testimony, as
well as the testimony from the members of the fire and
emergency services.
I also want to thank Senators DeWine and Dodd, and House
Members, including Congressman Pascrell here, for their efforts
on this matter.
The fire and emergency services are central to the
protection of life and property in our Nation. They are often
the first to arrive on the scene of any emergency, and
inevitably some are called upon to make the ultimate sacrifice
in the performance of their duties.
As Chairman of this Committee and Cochairman of the
Congressional Fire Service Caucus, I am committed to
understanding and effectively responding to the needs of the
fire and emergency services. In recent years, I have worked
with the national fire organizations to ensure that valuable
spectrum is available for use by the fire and emergency
services, and fought to ensure that vehicles carrying dangerous
chemicals are properly marked. I believe Government must take
appropriate action to protect members of the fire and emergency
services from injury and ensure that they have the capability
to perform their duties.
As it is currently drafted, the FIRE act would create a $5
billion grant program administered by FEMA. The grants could be
used for a variety of activities, including hiring personnel,
training, wellness and fitness programs, purchasing equipment,
and to modify fire stations.
Due to the traditional responsibility of State and local
governments for funding fire and emergency services programs
and equipment, legitimate issues exist about the creation of a
Federal grant program to fund local fire services. For example,
are State governments unable to meet funding needs for the fire
services? It is my understanding that collectively since fiscal
year 1998 State governments have reported surpluses of $35 and
$27 billion respectively for each year. Have the members of the
fire services sought to use these funds and, if so, what was
the response? How do we target the funds to ensure that they
are directed to the neediest departments? Finally, what are the
true needs of the fire services? Has a study been done to
determine the unmet needs of the fire service?
I am hopeful the witnesses will be able to answer some of
these questions. I look forward to hearing your testimony.
Senator Hollings.
STATEMENT OF HON. ERNEST F. HOLLINGS,
U.S. SENATOR FROM SOUTH CAROLINA
Senator Hollings. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, for
calling this hearing. The United States has the worst fire
record of any industrialized nation. According to a survey of
nearly 1,400 professional fire departments, 77 percent of the
fire departments operate with inadequate staff, 43 percent lack
the necessary gear, 70 percent of the fire departments do not
have adequate maintenance for their gear, 66 percent need
better communications, and 66 percent lack training.
Last August I was unfortunately subject to these very
statistics. I had to wait one hour for my house to catch fire.
It started down the street three doors, and across the street,
and the equipment came but the manpower did not. The manpower
was inadequate in the sense that they did not get downwind,
just upwind, and they went from one house to the other house to
the next house.
Mine was the fourth one across the street to catch and had
it not been for the city fire department coming some 17 miles
through the City of Charleston, Mount Pleasant, and Isle of
Palms, it would have burned the beach front down.
What happens is that rural areas develop into urban areas,
and the urban strategy is to overwhelm. I know in the city
itself, even if an automobile catches fire they send no less
than 10 to 12 firefighters to overwhelm it. They cannot afford
for the fire to spread, so overwhelming them is the first order
of business, to make certain.
I understand that Senator Dodd is with us today. I commend
the Senator from Connecticut on his leadership on this
particular score, because these grants are needed all over the
country.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
[The prepared statement of Senator Hollings follows:]
Prepared Statement of Hon. Ernest F. Hollings,
U.S. Senator from South Carolina
Good morning. I want to thank Senator McCain for holding this
hearing on the FIRE Act, S. 1941. I, along with 31 other Senators, am a
co-sponsor of this bill which was introduced by Senators Dodd and
DeWine on November 17, 1999.
The United States currently has one of the worst fire records of
any country in the industrial world. More than 2 million fires are
reported in the United States every year. These fires annually result
in approximately 4,000 deaths, 24,000 civilian injuries, more than $8
billion in direct property losses, and more than $50 billion in costs
to taxpayers.
In addition, the fire service--80% of whom are volunteers--is
stretching to meet its new challenges. As first responders,
firefighters now can be faced not only with fires but also with medical
emergencies, hazardous spills, and even acts of terrorism.
These numbers are not just statistics to me, for I know how tragic
a fire hazard can be. As many of you know, I lost my home in
Charleston, South Carolina, last year to fire. A lifetime of memories
went up in smoke. I cannot help thinking that if the local fire
departments had more support of resources, some of that loss may have
been prevented. Moreover, if a program such as the one proposed by the
Fire Act were in place, the Isle of Palms Fire Department they have had
more efficient fire trucks, more well-trained personnel, and better
communications.
But while my loss was personally devastating, I know it is nothing
compared to the losses of the families involved in that great fire in
Worcester, Massachusetts last year, where six firefighters died in the
line of duty.
I am glad to have our other distinguished witnesses here today to
tell why this Act is so important. S. 1941 would authorize $1 billion
annually through fiscal year 2005 for the Federal Emergency Management
Agency to make competitive grants to fire departments for a variety of
improvements including safety equipment, training, and fire prevention.
This is an extremely important matter for the Commerce Committee to
examine. Thank you again, Mr. Chairman, for holding this hearing today.
I hope that we will be able to send this legislation to the full Senate
before the end of the session.
The Chairman. Thank you, sir. I would like to thank the
Senator from Connecticut and the Senator from Ohio----
Senator Hollings. From Ohio, too. Excuse me.
The Chairman. Senator DeWine, I understand you have another
hearing right as we speak. Senator Dodd has graciously----
Senator DeWine. No, Mr. Chairman, I am going to defer to my
senior colleague here.
Senator Hollings. Let me thank Congressman Pascrell also.
The Chairman. I will let you decide who wants to start.
STATEMENT OF HON. CHRISTOPHER J. DODD,
U.S. SENATOR FROM CONNECTICUT
Senator Dodd. Briefly, Mr. Chairman, we thank you immensely
for the hearing this morning, and I am pleased to be joined in
this effort with Mike DeWine of Ohio and with our House
colleagues, Bill Pascrell and Curt Weldon.
Actually, you are going to hear from Congressman Pascrell
in a minute and Curt Weldon. I do not know if Curt is coming
over or not. He said he would be here, but the Congressman is a
former mayor of Paterson, New Jersey, and can speak very first-
hand about the difficulties of local communities, obviously,
and raising the resources today to have the capacity to respond
to the kinds of tragedies we see occur every single day across
our country.
As we are sitting here this morning--obviously different
circumstances, but we are looking at Colorado, a massive blaze,
one of maybe the 10 worst fires in the history of the country,
according to firefighters out there. Las Vegas hotels, where
people come from all over the country, certain places there, it
is becoming--toxic sites and wastes that--tragedies, accidents
that occur on the interstate highways of our country, the first
vehicles to respond almost invariably are fire departments, or
emergency medical services, so it is a changing situation.
If we are kind of caught in a way of sort of thinking about
fire departments as the old hook-and-ladder company of almost a
century ago, even the earliest part of this century, I think we
can end up with one sort of set of conclusions. If you begin to
see this today with the kinds of problems--with the World Trade
Center situation, the first vehicles there to respond were fire
vehicles, to respond to that situation, again, an incident that
has international ramifications, so beyond the kind of local
problems here this issue has taken on much broader questions
than historically is the case.
In the case of Curt Weldon you will hear from someone who
was a firefighter himself, and so can speak very personally
about this issue.
Well, there are roughly a million men and women every
single day who put on the equipment of firefighters across the
United States, and who put their lives on the line to protect
each and every one of us and our property, our valuables. More
than 100 of these million people lose their lives every single
year, a husband or wife, extraordinary role models.
We only recall vividly just a few months ago in Worcester,
Massachusetts, where six firefighters lost their lives in that
blaze, and there you had a department, by the way, that came
not just from Massachusetts but from Connecticut, Rhode Island
and other places, responding to that, again an example of how
people responding--it is a local issue, but people came from
across State lines to respond to these problems.
My job today, I would say to you, Mr. Chairman, is to try
and not to describe what others can do a much better job of,
and that is talking personally about their problems as the
mayor, firefighters, and of course you will hear from our
witnesses who very directly every day deal with these issues,
but I want to try and briefly talk about this bill, explain to
the Committee what I believe are the imperatives for a Federal
role here, not a dominant role, not the only role, but a
partnership role with local and State Governments.
America's fire service, nearly our entire emergency
response system has truly grown from the grassroots up. Local
needs and local resources have driven the developments of fire
departments since Benjamin Franklin set up the first fire
department, organized the department of Philadelphia in the
late 1730's.
This history of local control has brought with it certain
strengths and certain weaknesses. On the one hand, local needs
are extremely well-understood, obviously. Our local
firefighters know what their immediate communities need, and
they know how to meet those needs as the emergency medical
services do as well.
On the other hand, local departments are not necessarily
well-equipped to address essentially nonlocal problems, like
interstate highway accidents, airplane crashes, or acts of
terrorism. Many local governments do not have the financial
resources they need to meet all of the nonlocal challenges they
now face as new demands are made of local fire departments. The
gaps between what we expect from firefighters and the resources
we are providing them is getting wider and wider, and the case
of our colleague from South Carolina makes that case in his own
personal situation.
The high cost of modern equipment and increased training
demands make it impossible to continue to rely 100 percent on
local financing. This is especially true in small towns and
poorer jurisdictions, poor neighborhoods of our larger cities.
Local firefighters are dealing with a much broader range of
issues than ever before, and many of the new challenges they
face have been imposed on them by the Federal Government. Every
town that has an interstate highway running through it must be
prepared for an accident involving hazardous materials, or has
to be as ready as it can be to deal with the multicar pile-ups.
That is true for large cities and even large towns with
volunteer fire departments, and small annual budgets. Every
city that boasts a Federal office building or Federal
courthouse or a military armory or barracks has got to be
prepared to respond to an act of terrorism.
Firefighting is not just about dousing flames, it is about
being on the ground and being able to respond to whatever
catastrophe may occur, and that state of preparedness is one
that serves all of us, not just the local populations.
It is time for us to establish a sound basis for building a
solid working relationship between the Federal Government and
local firefighters, a relationship that recognizes that local
officials are in the best position to identify and address
local conditions, but a relationship that also recognizes that
all Americans, wherever they may live, deserve a reliable
emergency response system.
Departments are deferring new purchases, training, and even
new hires. Many departments simply cannot buy new equipment or
hire new firefighters to replace those who have been injured or
have retired. Obviously, a lack of equipment, coupled with
decreased manpower, places both firefighters and the public in
great danger. In 1998 alone, 44,000 firefighters were injured
on the job, many because they did not have the right equipment.
In fact, in Worcester, that tragedy, some of the modern
equipment that would have been available to determine the
intensity of the heat inside that inferno might have, in fact,
saved those lives, just that kind of basic equipment, but it is
expensive equipment, I might point out.
I know that there is a concern about the cost of this bill.
The Chairman has made that point, and I respect that immensely,
and I agree that we cannot ignore the budgetary limitations,
obviously, on the Federal Government, but we also cannot use
the Federal deficit, in my view, as an excuse for being blind
to the obvious and pressing needs of America's fire service.
I also believe that it is not enough for us to say that the
State government should pick up the slack. Not every State is
running budget surpluses. In fact, we may have noticed that
just in the last week a certain large State in the Southwest
was reported to be in deficit, and if we believe that domestic
security is important, and we believe that every American
deserves to be safe in his or her home and on the highways,
then our level of security should not depend on the budgetary
status of the city or State where she lives, or she may happen
to be traveling through.
I come from a State with a very long tradition of local
control. The New England town meeting is in many ways the
absolute epitome, the archetype of local self-determination, as
you see throughout our six New England States. Connecticut does
not have a strong county system. Instead, we have 169 cities
and towns, no county government, that are fairly autonomous,
with their own budgets and direct relationships,
responsibilities of providing a wide range of services,
including firefighting and emergency medical services.
If anybody understands the virtue of local participation
solving local problems, it is the people of the New England
States, so when I talk about a new Federal partnership, it is
that history and that tradition and the experience of
Connecticut's towns that guides me.
Back in November, when Senator DeWine and I introduced the
Senate version of the Firefighter Investment Response
Enhancement Act, we did so because we recognize that local
communities and their firefighters are struggling to make ends
meet. This bill would authorize FEMA to make grants to local
fire departments to buy the equipment they need and to hire new
firefighters to eliminate dangerous understaffing.
At its core, the bill recognizes that firefighters cannot
do their job safely if they do not have the men and equipment
they need. Mr. Chairman, we do not ask members of our Armed
Forces to go into battle without the right equipment. It would
be most egregious for us to ask firefighters to battle fires or
hazardous materials or bomb debris without the proper tools and
training that exist today, and that are available, but are
very, very costly, and we should not ask them to do it with
local tax dollars when the benefits accrue to the Nation as a
whole, exclusively.
The fire bill authorizes the Federal Government to provide
up to $1 billion a year to support local departments. Local
fire departments will write proposals to address local needs.
FEMA will evaluate each proposal and provide funding.
If every fire department in the country made a request it
would be about $32,000 per department. Now, obviously, we know
that $5 billion bill is a target. It has been pared back
significantly. There is $100 million. We are talking about an
appropriation process today, so we are talking about a much
smaller beginning here to try and provide some assistance to
these departments.
$1 billion, as I said, is a lot of money. There are about
31,000 local fire departments in the country, and $32,000 to a
department is not exactly going to wipe out this problem, but
it could begin to develop that partnership that I talked about.
Let me conclude with one last thought, if I can. We lose
almost $9 billion annually because of fire-related property
damage in this country, and worse, more than 4,000 Americans
die in fires every year. Our fire death rate is second highest
in the developed world, as Senator Hollings has pointed out.
660 American children die in fires every year.
All of these statistics are particularly tragic because the
U.S. leads the world in developing technologies that can reduce
these losses. There is a widening gap between what we are
technically capable of doing and what our local firefighters
can afford to do.
Businesses are losing property and people are dying not
because we do not know how to reduce these losses, but because
local jurisdictions have had their resources stretched to the
limits in many, many cases. We cannot eliminate all the dangers
that confront firefighters or the public, but we can help to
ensure that firefighters have up-to-date, safe, and reliable
equipment. We have an obligation, I think, to try and do so, to
be a better partner in this common struggle and battle.
With that, Mr. Chairman, I thank you.
The Chairman. Thank you.
Senator DeWine.
STATEMENT OF HON. MIKE DeWINE,
U.S. SENATOR FROM OHIO
Senator DeWine. Mr. Chairman, thank you very much. I
appreciate very much you and Senator Hollings holding this
hearing, and I appreciate my colleagues being here to talk
about the bill that we have introduced.
Mr. Chairman, I do have a written statement which I would
like to make available to the chair as part of the record.
The Chairman. Without objection.
Senator DeWine. I would like to take the time that I have,
Mr. Chairman, to try to address some of the concerns, and I
think they are very legitimate concerns, that you expressed in
your opening statement.
I do not know that there is anything that is more
grassroots in America than our fire departments. My home state
of Ohio probably is a pretty good example. We have numerous
fire departments. They are at the township level many times,
they are at the city level, they are at the village level.
It is grassroots, and it is grassroots also in the sense
that a great number of our firemen and firewomen are
volunteers. This is a great bargain that the taxpayers have
received throughout my entire lifetime, and I am sure much
before that. You can see the number of volunteers who go out
every day and make a difference.
I have seen it in my own family. My wife's uncle and her
cousins have been actively involved as volunteer firemen for
many, many years, and I see the tremendous amount of time and
effort that they put into this.
Mr. Chairman, my point, though, is that while the system
works, it is at the local level, it is the most grassroots
thing probably we have in government today, but the sad reality
is that because it is grassroots, the disparity in funding is
probably the greatest than in anything that we do. It is
probably even more disparity than sometimes we see in our
school districts.
When you look at the different fire districts, when you
look at the different townships and the way it is administered
across this country, there is tremendous disparity in funding.
This is one place I think the Federal Government can play a
limited role, and the limited role, as my colleague Senator
Dodd has said, is not to supplant, or not to in any way change
that great grassroots system that we have, but rather to build
upon that system and to try to use these finite federal dollars
to make a fundamental difference. Again, the disparity I think
is very bad, and because of that great disparity we end up
losing a lot of lives.
One of the things that I am proudest of about this bill is
that we set aside--while we give the local departments
tremendous flexibility--this is a very, very flexible bill,
because all three of us believe in what happens at the local
level and the ability of people to make their own decisions,
but one thing that we do in this bill that sets some direction
is to say that a percentage of the money, 10 percent of the
money has to be set aside for prevention.
When we look at the number of lives that are lost every
year in fires, what is so disturbing is, as Senator Dodd has
said, these are preventable. At least 90 percent of them are
preventable. Fire is responsible for killing more Americans
than all natural disasters in this country combined. Every 18
seconds a fire department responds to a fire somewhere in the
United States.
In 1998, there were over 4,000 civilian nonfirefighter fire
deaths, and that amounts to a civilian fire death every 130
minutes. Many of these deaths are children. As both of my
colleagues know, my focus, my work in the U.S. Senate has been
on children, and I know we have all had this experience. I had
it several weeks ago in Ohio. I pick up a paper and read about
more fire deaths. Usually they are residential, and usually
they are children.
These are very preventable, and our fire departments have a
great capability, if we could give them more resources, to go
out into the community and help with fire detectors, help with
education, help with training to literally penetrate the
neighborhoods where these deaths are occurring.
In 1996, which is the last year that I have statistics for,
nearly 800 children ages 14 and under died in residential
fires. More than 60 percent of these children were ages 4 and
under. That is who is dying. In addition, each year fires in
the home injure nearly 47,000 children ages 14 and under.
So this is a limited bill, it is a targeted bill, it is a
bill that I think would fundamentally make a difference and
will save lives. It is also a bill, Mr. Chairman, that will
pale in comparison with what we have done in the other area of
law enforcement, and that is with our police.
Beginning back in the 1960's this Government, the Federal
Government, has invested a tremendous amount of money in what
we do with police. We are not suggesting that we replicate
that, but what we are suggesting is that this relatively modest
amount of money will make a fundamental difference in what
happens.
My colleague, Senator Dodd, has mentioned maybe some of the
other justifications for the Federal Government playing a role.
Terrorism, Mr. Chairman, Senator Hollings, is going to be more
and more on our mind, and the thing I think that we need to
keep in mind is that no matter how well the so-called experts
are who will actually come in to deal with terrorism, or to
come in to deal with a toxic spill, or come in to deal with
some weapon of mass destruction that is inflicted on American
citizens in one area, what we have to understand is, the first
people to respond are going to be the same people that go to
your house or go to my house, or the first people that respond
on the highway when something happens.
That is going to be the local fire department, and so they
have to have this additional training, and you are seeing fire
departments across this country expending a tremendous amount
of money in additional training for terrorism and other, what I
would call national issues, whether it is terrorism, whether it
is toxic spills. These are things we want to deal with as a
country, and so clearly we have a Federal problem that our
local jurisdictions are being asked already to bear a very
heavy burden in expenses.
So let me just conclude, Mr. Chairman, Senator Hollings, by
thanking you for your interest in this. Thank you for holding
the hearing. It is, as we say, only an authorization. It will
allow us to move forward and to fight the battle out, frankly
with the appropriators, and to determine how much money in any
given year might be appropriate.
But I think this bill sets a very good framework for which
any money could be poured into, and I think it would
fundamentally make a difference, it will save lives, it will
save children's lives, and it is clearly the right thing to do.
I appreciate your time.
[The prepared statement of Senator DeWine follows:]
Prepared Statement of Hon. Mike DeWine, U.S. Senator from Ohio
Thank you Chairman McCain and Ranking Member Hollings for holding
this important hearing today to discuss the need for adequate resources
for America's firefighters. I am pleased to be testifying alongside my
friends and colleagues, Senator Dodd from Connecticut and Congressman
Pascrell from New Jersey, who have been the key advocates on the issue
of fire safety. I am also anxious to hear from the firefighters who are
here today, as they will give us the most valuable perspective on the
need for fire prevention education and safety training.
As you know, we are here to talk about an issue that affects all of
us. That issue is fire prevention, safety, and the necessity--the
absolute necessity--of providing our firefighters with the resources
they need to help prevent fires, the tools necessary to fight fires,
and the funds for fire prevention education programs for the public.
I cannot overstate just how important fire fighting and prevention
education are to our families. Overall, fire is responsible for killing
more Americans than all natural disasters combined! Do you realize that
every 18 seconds, a fire department responds to a fire somewhere in the
United States? In 1998, there were 4,035 civilian (non-firefighters)
fire deaths--that amounts to a civilian fire death every 130 minutes!
Sadly, many of those who die each year in fires are children. In 1996,
for example, nearly 800 children ages 14 and under died in residential
fires. More than 60 percent of these children were ages 4 and under. In
addition, each year, fires in the home injure nearly 47,000 children
ages 14 and under.
Despite these tragic statistics, the federal government has not
made funding for firefighting a high enough priority. Last year, the
federal government spent just $32 million on fire prevention and
training for the Fire Services Administration. While there are other
sources of federal funding, the total amount of federal dollars for
firefighting pales in comparison to what Washington spends annually on
law enforcement initiatives.
To address the clear inequity between these two vital public safety
entities, Senator Dodd and I introduced the Firefighter Investment and
Response Enhancement Act (FIRE), while Congressman Pascrell has
introduced a similar measure in the House of Representatives. Although
additional bills have been introduced in both the House and Senate to
address the federal funding gap, I believe our Firefighter Investment
bill offers our fire departments the most flexibility to fund their
local communities' needs.
Our FIRE bill is simple. It would authorize $5 billion over the
next five years in grants to local fire departments. Any fire
department is eligible for these grants. In addition to prevention
programs, the grants can be used for training, equipment, or the hiring
of more firefighters.
Also, the grant money could be used for the purchase of equipment,
like thermal-imaging cameras. These cameras are lifesaving devices used
to locate firefighters and others trapped in burning buildings. These
new high-tech cameras can pick up heat sources through thick smoke,
walls, doors, and behind furniture to help locate and rescue those who
have become lost and disoriented in burning buildings.
In Monroe, Ohio, near Cincinnati, for example, a thermal imaging
camera recently helped save the lives of two firefighters, Scott
Clasgens and Andrew Turner, who were trapped in a building, unable to
locate an escape route through the thick black smoke of the fire.
Through a fund-raising drive spear-headed by local residents, the
Monroe Fire Department received a $15,000 thermal-imaging camera. Using
the camera, firefighters/paramedics, John King and Jamie Verdin, found
the missing firefighters. The equipment saved their lives.
We need to remember, though, that our number one priority should be
stopping fires before they ever happen. Effective education efforts are
the first steps in fire prevention. That is why our Senate version of
the FIRE bill has a specific provision requiring that at least $500
million go toward fire prevention education programs.
I am going to work very hard to see to it that the Senate passes
our Firefighter Investment legislation. It is vital that we do
everything possible to see to it that the federal government increases
its commitment to the men and women who make up our local fire
departments. Thank you again for holding this important hearing and for
allowing me to testify.
The Chairman. I thank you, Senator DeWine. I thank both of
our Senate colleagues for their commitment to the people of
America and those valiant men and women who go out and risk
their lives on a daily basis.
Congressman Pascrell, I am sorry about the longwindedness
of my colleague. It is a problem we have here in the Senate,
and I appreciate your patience. Please proceed. We are glad to
have you.
STATEMENT OF HON. BILL PASCRELL, JR.,
U.S. REPRESENTATIVE FROM NEW JERSEY
Mr. Pascrell. Two good men, Senator. Two good men.
The Chairman. Thank you, sir.
Mr. Pascrell. Thank you, Chairman McCain and Senator
Hollings for holding the hearing.
I am proud to be the sponsor of the FIRE act in the House
of Representatives, and I would also like to thank and
recognize Senators Dodd and DeWine for the hard work that they
have done on this subject. It is the neglected part of the
public safety equation that we are addressing here, and we are
addressing it to the degree that we believe the need exists, so
I want to thank them both for their great testimony.
I want to state at the outset, Mr. Chairman, that this is
solid legislation which recognizes the value of and the need of
our Nation's firefighters by committing federal funding and
resources to the brave men and women that serve our
communities. To date, the FIRE act has been endorsed by 7 major
fire service organizations in this Nation. We have 276
bipartisan cosponsors in the House, and in the Senate, S. 1941,
33 bipartisan cosponsors, 10 of whom are members of this
Committee.
The administration has written to me expressing their
support in writing. I am very encouraged that Members support
this legislation for its merits, and have refused to make this
a political or partisan issue. After all, firefighters do not
go into a burning building and ask the inhabitants whether they
are Democrats or Republicans.
The legislation provides dollars and grants for hiring
personnel, purchasing new and modernized equipment, fire
prevention education programs, wellness programs for our
firefighters, modifying outdated fire stations, and more. These
grants will go to paid departments as well as part-paid and
volunteer emergency medical technicians as well. EMT's have
certainly been neglected throughout America.
I strongly believe that the federal role in the
firefighting service can and should be increased. Current
spending for fire services is roughly $40 million, which is
dreadfully inadequate. The fire side of the public safety
equation has, as I said, been neglected.
S. 1941, however, the authorizing level of funding I
believe is appropriate. This funding is an investment in safety
for our firefighters, and confirmation to our communities that
the Federal Government will work to provide our fire service
personnel with the best equipment and resources available. We
are talking about 31,000-plus fire departments that are
recognized. Some of them we do not even know about, I found out
in my research.
And it sends the dollars directly to the departments. No
State bureaucracies are involved here. We have battled that out
in other issues in the Congress of the United States.
Let me also remind colleagues that the role of firefighters
is expanding. There is a different face on firefighting today
than there was 20 or 30 years ago. Several fire departments in
this Nation reach across State, county, and city lines to
assist each other with natural disasters and incidents of
domestic terrorism such as in Oklahoma City.
As you know, there are two fire search and rescue units
that have responded to international disasters on behalf of the
United States collectively. The Miami Dade Fire and Rescue
Department and the Fairfax Search and Rescue teams have
traveled to several countries, including Columbia, Turkey,
Mexico City, and Mozambique in order to help with disaster
relief.
Natural and manmade disasters do not discriminate when and
where they arise, and proudly the firefighters of the United
States do not discriminate when and where they provide help.
The role of our firefighters is ever-changing. It is my belief
that that role that the Federal Government plays during these
changes must be commensurate.
I am certain that many of us here today share a common
sadness when a firefighter or law enforcement officer is struck
down in the line of duty, just recently in the Capitol, not too
long ago, Officer Jacob Chestnut and Detective John Gibson, and
we responded to that. How sad that was.
I am all too familiar with the grief that accompanies the
loss of life in the line of duty. As mayor of Paterson, New
Jersey, the third largest city in New Jersey, I worked
intimately with fire and police personnel to protect our city.
I was always pleased to take phone calls from the men and women
that serve Paterson in a law enforcement or firefighting
capacity, because they would share uplifting accounts of
successful rescues and relate how things were going from their
perspective with me.
Unfortunately, I received a phone call 1 day that I was not
prepared to take. On a freezing day in February 1991, an entire
block in my city was engulfed in flame. Despite the weather
conditions, the flames lasted for a day and a half. The first
firefighting unit responded to the first alarm, first
responders, Senator Dodd and DeWine have pointed out time and
time again, and many times the last to leave.
The firefighters advanced to the basement of one of the
buildings in an effort to locate the source of the inferno. The
smoke was too dense. The firefighters hung on to a rope for
safety, and after a while they withdrew from the basement by
command, for the heat and smoke were overwhelming. Sadly, John
Nicosia, a personal friend of mine, both husband and
firefighter, became disoriented, lost his way in the fire. His
body was found 2 days later.
Mr. Chairman, I will never forget the feeling I had after
losing that brave fireman. I thought of his family often while
working on this legislation and this experience serves as my
motivation.
It is time that we stop paying lip service to our
firefighters at holiday parades without putting our money where
our mouth is during the rest of the year. We have the
opportunity to protect our men and women in firefighting
service, and the time to act is now.
I am proud to be among hundreds of colleagues fighting for
this legislation to be enacted this year so as to ensure that
firefighters have a fighting chance, and I thank you both for
hearing what I have to say.
[The prepared statement of Congressman Pascrell follows:]
Prepared Statement of Hon. Bill Pascrell, Jr.,
U.S. Representative from New Jersey
Good morning. I would like to thank Chairman McCain and Senator
Hollings for holding this hearing today on S. 1941, the Firefighter
Investment and Response Enhancement Act (FIRE).
I am proud to be the sponsor of the FIRE Act in the House of
Representatives, and I would also like to thank and recognize Senators
Dodd and DeWine for their leadership in the Senate on this important
measure. I thank you both for your kind remarks and appreciate your
testimonies.
Mr. Chairman, I would like to state at the outset that this is
solid legislation, which recognizes the value of and need for our
Nation's firefighters by committing federal funding and resources to
the brave men and women that serve our communities.
To date, the FIRE Act has been endorsed by seven major fire service
organizations in the Nation, and has 276 bipartisan cosponsors in the
House and, in the Senate, S. 1941 has 33 bipartisan cosponsors, 10 of
whom that are on this Committee. The Administration has also written to
me expressing their support.
I am very encouraged that Members support this legislation for its
merits and have refused to make this a political or partisan issue.
After all, fire fighters don't go into a burning building and ask the
inhabitants whether they are Democrats or Republicans.
This legislation provides $1 billion in grants for hiring
personnel, purchasing new and modernized equipment, fire prevention and
education programs, wellness programs for our firefighters, modifying
outdated fire stations, and more. These grants will go to paid
departments as well as part-paid and volunteer and emergency medical
technicians as well.
I believe that the federal role in the fire fighting service can
and should be increased. Current spending for fire services is roughly
$40 million, which is dreadfully inadequate. In S. 1941, however, the
authorizing level of funding is appropriate. This funding is an
investment in safety for our fire fighters and confirmation to our
communities that the federal government will work to provide our fire
service personnel with the best equipment and resources available.
Furthermore, there is no selective assistance in this bill--all
31,000 plus departments are recognized and included. And, it sends the
dollars directly to the departments to the communities in need through
competitive grants, therefore bypassing potential state level red tape.
I would also like to remind my colleagues that the role of fire
fighters is expanding. Several fire departments in this Nation reach
across state, county and city lines to assist each other with natural
disasters and incidents of domestic terrorism (i.e., Oklahoma City.) As
you know, there are two fire search and rescue units that have even
responded to international disaster on behalf of the United States.
Collectively, the Miami Dade Fire Rescue Department and the Fairfax
County Search and Rescue teams (SAR) have traveled to several
countries--including Colombia, Turkey, Mexico City and Mozambique--in
order to help with disaster relief.
Natural and man made disasters do not discriminate when and where
they arise; proudly, the fire fighters of the United States do not
discriminate when or where they provide help.
The role of our fire fighters is ever changing, and it is my strong
belief that the role that the federal government plays during these
changes must be commensurate.
I am certain that many of us here today share a common sadness when
a fire fighter or law enforcement officer is struck down in the line of
duty. In fact, we just paid homage yesterday to two fallen heroes of
the Capitol Police force, Officer Jacob J. Chestnut and Detective John
Gibson.
I am all too familiar with the grief that accompanies the loss of
life in the line of duty. When I was the Mayor of Paterson, New Jersey,
I worked intimately with both fire and police personnel to protect our
city. I was always pleased to take phone calls from the men and women
that served Paterson in a law enforcement or fire fighting capacity
because they would share uplifting accounts of successful rescues and
relate how things were going from their perspective with me.
Unfortunately, I received a phone call one day that I was not
prepared to take. On a freezing day in February 1991, an entire block
in the City of Paterson was consumed by fire. Despite the weather
conditions, the blaze lasted for a day and a half.
The first fire fighting unit responded to the first alarm at 7:30
a.m. The fire fighters advanced to the basement of one of the buildings
in an effort to locate the source of the inferno.
The smoke was too dense, and the fire fighters hung onto a rope for
safety. After a while, they withdrew from the basement by command, for
the heat and smoke were overwhelming and the fire was raging. Sadly,
John Nicosia, both husband and fire fighter, became disoriented and
lost his way in the fire. His body was found two days later.
Mr. Chairman, I will never forget the feeling I had after losing
that brave fireman. I have thought of his family often while working on
this legislation, and this experience serves as my motivation.
It is time that we stop paying lip service to our fire fighters at
holiday parades without putting our money where our mouth is during the
rest of the year.
We have the opportunity to protect our men and women in fire
fighting service, and the time to act is now. I am proud to be among
hundreds of colleagues fighting for this legislation to be enacted this
year, so as to ensure that fire fighters have a fighting chance.
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
The Chairman. Thank you very much, and I thank our
colleagues for joining us today on this very important issue. I
know you have to go. Senator Hollings would like to make a
comment.
Senator Hollings. Yes. Congressman Pascrell and each of my
colleagues, you learn something after years. I got annoyed at
the statement made by a senior judge years ago in my own home
state who said that the public got way better government than
what they paid for. I said, that was a rather arrogant
statement, but I have learned over the years that this is true.
Specifically, the chairman of President Reagan's Federalism
Committee, which studied the competence of personnel at the
federal level, was Mr. Singh of Signal Corporation. I had lunch
with him up in Nashua, New Hampshire, one day, and he said
maybe about the Secretaries and the Assistant Secretaries there
could be some misgivings. But down at the regular rated federal
personnel, he said in the private sector they would pay them at
least two times what they make working for the government,
probably three and four times the amount for the work they do.
Now, firefighting, like law enforcement, like the guards at
the penitentiary, and teaching, all of these public service
jobs emanated from the Depression. In the early days, in the
forties, when I ran one little village, the fight there was not
about education or fire or taxes or anything else. If you got
elected, you could hire the teachers, and the teachers did not
have to have any qualifications.
Heavens above, now we all talk about training. In my day
coming along, nobody at the fire department had any training.
It just was not contemplated that they would, and they have
been getting along with, even today, volunteer firefighting.
I arrived in Washington in 1966. In 1968, during the
assassination of Martin Luther King and Robert Kennedy, they
would pull the box here in the District, and then when the fire
engine came they would shoot the firemen. I found that if you
get killed in the line of duty at the FBI, you had a $50,000
death benefit, but there was nothing for the firemen, so I
corrected that. I think it is now maybe up to $100,000 or
something, but I know we put it in for the federal
firefighters. We put in the school out at Marjorie Webster.
But in my own personal experience, this thing extends right
to the insurance companies, and I have been getting on my
senior colleague here, Senator Dodd, with Travelers. They have
my coverage, and they are wonderful, so I am not complaining
about Travelers, but I am complaining about Travelers losing
money.
If I ran that company I would cancel every policy at the
town I live in. Why? For the simple reason that I found out the
insurance companies years ago formulated what they called the
Insurance Services Corporation over in Atlanta. They ran it for
a while. Now it is private. They do the rating, and they give
the policies out as according to the rating.
So I said, this cannot be rated No. 1 for this town and its
size. They ought to come over and look at it, because we do not
have adequate fire protection, and I do not want to get into
all the details. A fire engine caught fire. Can you imagine
going there to put out the fire and then obviously extending
the fire?
So they were totally inadequate. I called the Insurance
Services Corporation three different times and they said, no,
we do not come to reevaluate unless the town asks us. Well, the
town, the culprit, was not going to call, and the insurance
companies still have not rerated it. I have even talked to my
insurance commissioner for the State of South Carolina, and he
cannot get anything done about it.
Your bill is highly important, and it makes us begin to pay
attention to firefighting. Senator DeWine gives me credibility,
because they would call this a liberal bill--you know, they
make it a four-letter word down where I live, liberal bill. The
truth of the matter is, you would think at least they could
take care of fire protection at the local level.
Well, we thought that about law enforcement, and we found
out once we got them spoiled at getting good law enforcement,
and then having to take it over at the local level, that
upgraded law enforcement. We had to do that from the federal
level.
In the City of Charleston now the majority of the police
department, for example, are college graduates. When I came
along, no college graduate was on any police department. Those
who could not get through high school were in law enforcement.
Now, to be a law enforcement officer you have got to be
sophisticated, diplomatic, careful, sensitive, and all of these
other things, as well as tough, and the same goes with
firefighting.
You just cannot get any podunk off the street and say, come
on, let us fight the fire. They have got to have training,
expertise, and everything else. They have got to have cars, and
we are lucky we are getting by. We get way better fire
protection than what the people are paying for, and your little
initiative here will begin to upgrade this last tail end of the
whip of public service. Everybody thought in my day if you
could not get a job anywhere, go on down to the volunteer fire
department. At least they cooked meals down there and you would
get something to eat. And that is what you and I are having to
pick up for.
Through all of this I am trying to emphasize the importance
of this initiative. It is not just finding some fellas to fight
fires--and they do vote. I go around to the fire department
first.
[Laughter.]
Senator Hollings. But it is not just to get the votes, it
is really to get the proper protection that we are enjoying
here at the federal level. Now, we pay them, and they get a
benefit and everything else of that kind.
I apologize, Mr. Chairman, for that side remark, but it has
got to be emphasized. I have studied firefighting from the word
go, and these folks are on target.
The Chairman. Thank you, Senator Hollings, and all of us I
think appreciate the incredible loss that you experienced,
irreplaceable objects, not only the trauma that your family
experienced, but your commitment on this issue certainly
predates your personal tragedy that you experienced.
I would ask my other three colleagues if they have any
response to Senator Hollings' comments before--actually, Weldon
is here. Senator Dodd and Senator DeWine and Congressman
Pascrell, I know you have other commitments, and we will send
you a copy of Congressman Weldon's remarks.
Senator Dodd. Thank you.
Senator DeWine. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. He says he can
handle you guys alone.
The Chairman. There you go. Knowing Congressman Weldon, he
can handle a lot of us.
[Laughter.]
The Chairman. Thank you.
STATEMENT OF HON. CURT WELDON,
U.S. REPRESENTATIVE FROM PENNSYLVANIA
Mr. Weldon. Thank you, Mr. Chairman and Senator Hollings
for allowing me to join your company, because you have been
tireless advocates for the men and women of the American fire
service.
Senator McCain, you were one of our original cochairs of
the Fire Caucus when I started with fire safety issues 12 years
ago after coming to Congress, and you have been with us for
some tough battles, and I could not be here without
acknowledging for the record what you did to help us in the
struggle for the 24 MHz spectrum range. You went to the wall
for public safety in this country when almost everyone else was
against you, and because of that effort we now have the
opportunity to provide additional frequency allocation for the
men and women of the fire service across the country.
I would also be remiss if I did not mention it was you who
helped us deny the agricultural industry an exemption for
transporting hazardous materials without proper placarding,
again a key issue for the fire and the EMS community
nationwide, so I come here in tribute to the work that you have
done, and ask you to help us as we move to another level in
this battle.
As you know, Senator McCain, I would not be in politics
were it not for the fire service. I was born and raised in a
fire service family, became the president and fire chief of my
local company, went back and got a degree in fire protection,
and ran the county training department as a volunteer for 80
fire companies, 2 career and 78 volunteer companies.
I am a member of the fire service first. I am a politician
and a Republican politician second, and as you know from
attending our dinners and from the work that we have done
together, I have been convinced that neither party has
addressed the concerns of these brave heroes.
As a fellow member on the House side of the Armed Services
Committee, I share your concerns for our military, and you have
been a tireless advocate for those issues, and I have applauded
you for that publicly. In fact, I consider them our
international defenders and, like you, I do not want to ever
see our military be asked to go into harm's way without proper
protection and training, and we take every life to the nth
degree in terms of protecting them with technology, equipment,
and so forth.
Well, today we are talking about our domestic defenders. As
the corollary to our international defenders, these are the men
and women who do not just fight fires. As you know, there are
32,000 departments across the country, 85 percent of which are
volunteer. Every day of the week, since long before this
country was a country, 230-some years ago, when the fire
service was born, it has been responding to every disaster.
It is the first responder on fires, tornadoes, earthquakes,
floods, hazmat incidents, any type of disaster America has. It
is not the National Guard there first. It is not the Marine
Corps teams, it is not the FEMA bureaucrat, and it is not the
State officials. It is the men and women who serve in those
32,000 departments.
And in fact, we have been giving them more and more
responsibility as we see the need to prepare for the
consequence management that will come from the potential use of
a weapon of mass destruction.
Now, in the history of this country we have seen fit at the
federal level to help other people respond to disasters like
our police. Our current federal appropriations are in the
neighborhood of $4 billion a year. We even pay for half the
cost of the police vest for local police to be protected
against bullets that might injure or kill them. We help them
buy police cars, we help them pay for detectives.
Unfortunately, the amount of money that we spend on the fire
and EMS community, in spite of the increased support that they
need for dealing with weapons of mass destruction or terrorism,
is basically nonexistent.
Now, we have plussed-up money. That money has largely gone
to the Justice Department for use for training, but the fire
service again is not directly benefiting from the allocation of
those dollars. What we are saying is, it is time that we
respond to America's domestic defenders to give them additional
resources to continue to do what they have been doing.
We do not want to take those volunteers and stop them from
volunteering. We want to stop them from having to have chicken
dinners and tag days to pay for that $750,000 ladder truck. We
want them to focus more on training while we assist them with
the tools they need to continue to volunteer to serve our towns
and our counties and our cities, and that is why it is
important that we look toward some Federal assistance.
Now, there is legislation out there to do that. Mr.
Pascrell has a bill, which I have cosponsored, that will do
that. There are other bills dealing with hepatitis C, for
instance, that Bob Brady has introduced, other bills that have
been introduced, but the important point is, Senator, that I
think we need to have the Federal Government look to provide
some support.
For all these disasters we have suffered we are willing to
put billions of dollars to help communities respond to
disasters. We are willing to put billions of dollars to help
the military respond, for the equipment they have used, but we
have not put a dime onto the table to help the firefighters
replace the equipment that they have used, to help the
firefighters recruit new volunteers, to help the career fire
departments obtain additional capacity in terms of their
support. It has been the one group that we have neglected.
And what really offends me is, there is no other group in
the country, except for police and the military, where each
year 100 of them are killed. We do not lose 100 teachers, and I
am a teacher by profession. There are not 100 teachers each
year killed teaching school. There are not 100 Red Cross
volunteers--and I support the Red Cross--killed.
Every year at Emmitsburg we honor over 100 men and women
who are killed each year in protecting their towns and their
cities, and yet this group of people, who are largely
volunteer, and who are killed in the course of their volunteer
activities, we have done little to nothing in terms of
responding to their needs.
It is time we step up and take care of these people. It is
time we provide some limited resources. I wish we could take
some of that money that we give to DOD or the Justice
Department and earmark it directly for local fire departments,
because while some of our attempts are well-intentioned, what
ends up happening, the Federal and the State bureaucracies
siphon off that money. They get the bucks. They hire more
bureaucrats, but the dollars do not end up down where they
should, and that is down with the local fire and EMS
departments. We need to change that.
Now, the second thing I want to acknowledge, Mr. Chairman,
is, we do not need to create legislation that is hollow. As a
member of the fire service, what I tell the firefighters all
the time is, I do not want to pass a bill, come back and have a
press conference in front of your groups and say, well, aren't
we great, we have passed a multibillion bill but no
appropriation. That happened with the rural volunteer fire
protection program. Since I have been in Congress, over a
decade, the Congress has, in fact, reauthorized time and again
the rural fire protection program. We have never fully funded
that program.
So the one meager attempt we had to assist firefighters
across the country has never been fully appropriated by the
Congress, and so I want to be careful that in my statement to
this Committee, that I am not just for passing authorizing
legislation. I want to put the money on the table, where the
rubber meets the road.
Now, in the House emergency supplemental bill I offered an
amendment, which was bipartisan, which only 28 Members opposed,
to allocate $100 million for the fire and EMS community this
year.
Senator Roth is championing that cause on the Senate side.
If we could get your support to move that $100 million, that
would be real money this year.
Second to that, and equally important, is the need to
create ongoing programs to provide support for the fire and EMS
community in America, such as the Pascrell bill, and such as
other legislation that is being proposed by other Members.
We need to take this group of people seriously. The fire
service does not want itself federalized. They do not want some
big bureaucracy siphoning off money. They simply want to be
recognized for who they are, the people who are the heart and
soul of America, the people who are the core of our
communities, who do not just fight the fires, as I mentioned.
You go to every town in Arizona, Mr. Chairman, you know,
and I have been throughout your State, in the local fire
departments that is where you vote on Election Day. It is where
you have the July Fourth parades emanate from, the Memorial Day
celebrations. It is where the Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops
meet. In almost every town in America, the fire service is the
heart of the community.
When a kid is lost, they call the fire department. When the
cat is in the tree, they call the fire department. When the
cellars need to be pumped out, they call the fire department.
This group of people, who has the original spirit of America
more than any other group I can think of, except for perhaps
our military, needs to be recognized. That recognition should
come with a Federal program to support their efforts, the needs
they have, the training they have, and the resources that they
need so desperately.
Thank you.
The Chairman. Thank you very much, Congressman Weldon, and
thank you for your lifelong advocacy for fire safety.
Just out of curiosity, is it not true that the Fire Safety
Caucus is the largest in the Congress?
Mr. Weldon. It is, with your help early on. Actually, one
of the original cochairs with you was Vice President Al Gore.
We have been for the last 12 years the largest caucus in the
Congress. As you know, we meet every year. We honored you last
year with our highest award because of your advocacy for fire
and life safety issues, and we value and treasure your
leadership. It has been untiring.
You and Senator Bryan, when you both were originally on the
Committee overseeing the U.S. Fire Administration, fought back
Republican attempts to zero out that agency, and helped us win
the battle against our own party to make sure the fire service
was properly given the support that it needed at that time.
The Chairman. Well, I thank you, Congressman Weldon, for
your kind remarks. The fact is, you were the leader in all of
those efforts and I appreciate your modesty. The fact is, we
know where the credit goes, and that is to you and Congressman
Pascrell, so I want to thank you all for being here this
morning, and thank you for your time. I thank you for your
commitment. Thank you very much.
Mr. Weldon. Thank you.
The Chairman. Could I ask for the next panel, which is
Chief Luther Fincher, president of the International
Association of Fire Chiefs, Mr. James Monihan, former chairman
of the National Volunteer Fire Council, Mr. Billy Shields, vice
president, Professional Fire Fighters of Arizona, and Chief
James Whitworth of the Miami Township Fire and Emergency
Service. Could I thank all of you for being here, and we will
begin with you, Chief Fincher.
STATEMENT OF CHIEF LUTHER L. FINCHER, JR., PRESIDENT,
INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF FIRE CHIEFS (IAFC)
Mr. Fincher. Mr. Chairman and members of the Committee, I
am Luther Fincher, chairman of the Charlotte, North Carolina
Fire Department. I am appearing today as president of the
International Association of Fire Chiefs. I have three goals
today. First, I want to ensure that the Committee understands
the increasing scope and responsibilities of today's fire
service. It does much more than put out fires and provide
emergency medical care.
Second, and most importantly, I want to ask you to change
your view and see the fire service in a new light. The fire
service is organized locally so it can respond to individual
needs and threats within each community. However, local fire
services collectively carry out one of the most important
national missions. They protect and defend our Nation's
critical infrastructure, the people, the places, and the things
that allow our economy, our country, even our way of life to
function every day.
Third, I want to ask the Federal Government to assign the
fire and emergency services the same priority attention that it
does to the other essential national resources that make this
country what it is today and will be tomorrow.
The total of today's public fire service is estimated at
more than 30,000 fire departments, with approximately 1.1
million members. Today's fire and emergency services have
evolved beyond putting out fires. They have become an all-
hazard risk management organization. Even today's fires have
radically changed.
While technology has improved firefighter safety, new
materials and chemicals come to market constantly posing
greater threats than ever before. As communities expand, urban
wildland fires threaten more and more populated areas. Then
there is the example of joint response with law enforcement to
shut down clandestine drug labs containing potential explosive
materials.
In larger communities and many smaller ones, the fire
service responds to more calls involving emergency medical care
than all other types of incidents, often providing the highest
level emergency treatment available outside the hospital. This
standard of care is constantly rising, and posing new
challenges. The fire service ambulances transport the majority
of patients going to our Nation's emergency departments. Here,
too, the fire service faces numerous risks, ranging from
infectious diseases to violent and dangerous patients.
An important mission is our response to a growing number of
incidents that require highly specialized rescue skills and
equipment. The fire service is there when the child is trapped
in the well, or struggles in swift-moving water. The fire
service acts to bring the injured construction worker safely to
the ground, digs through the collapsed trench or building, and
enters the confined space of an industrial tank when the person
cleaning it is overcome and collapses, and the fire service
extricates injured persons from automobile accidents on
America's roads and highways every hour of every day.
We deal with all natural disasters. The fire service is
there when nature strikes as well. We were there with the
California earthquakes, when the great Mississippi River
flooded, and when Hurricane Andrew and Hugo blew through our
communities. The fire service was there, too, when Hurricane
Floyd devastated my home State of North Carolina.
Terrorism is another role. Natural disasters are not the
only unpredictable threat, though. The fire service skills
continue to be challenged by the terrorist who seeks to destroy
the lives of others. These skills were put to the test when
brave men and women were organized within local fire
departments to respond to the Federal building disaster in
Oklahoma City, as FEMA supported urban search and rescue teams.
However, the terrorist threat does not always come from a
bomb made of fertilizer. Today, it may be a device containing a
nuclear, biological, or chemical weapon. The fire service has
to be ready for that, too. Our very freedom is at stake if we
cannot respond.
Our safety is paramount. We do not choose when to respond.
We must respond every time a call for help is made. It is
impossible to eliminate all risk from the wide variety of
dangers we face. Given this challenge, the fire service is
obligated to take all reasonable steps to train and equip our
personnel so that they can operate as safely as possible. We
have to be the solutions to our customers' problems.
The fire service is critical to our Nation's
infrastructure. Fire departments are organized within their
communities, allowing them to adapt to specific local needs and
threats. However, what binds this Nation's fire service
together into a single resource is our national mission, to
protect the human and physical treasures that allow the economy
to run and this country to thrive.
For instance, enormous quantities of hazardous materials
travel the interstates, on railroad tracks, and through the
air, and on the water every day. Without the Nation's fire
service standing by, our citizens would not have the peace of
mind to allow this transport and commerce to take place.
Our role in protecting commerce also extends to the
buildings and workers who carry out the electronic
communications and financial business fueling our Nation's
economic growth. The fire service must be a high priority.
Three years ago, the Presidential Commission on Protection
of the Critical Infrastructure identified the fire service as
integral to the protection of our Nation's vital
infrastructure. Therefore, it must be assigned the same
priority given to other essential components that make up the
very fabric of our Nation. We are truly America's domestic
defenders.
In closing, a final thought. S. 1941 contains a provision
that not less than 10 percent of the total funds available will
be set aside exclusively for fire prevention programs. We
respectfully suggest that individual fire departments be given
the latitude to use Federal grant funds to respond to their own
more urgent needs, instead of a blanket Federal directive that
may not meet local requirements. In this regard, we support the
House version without the 10-percent set-aside.
Mr. Chairman, we thank you for holding this hearing today,
and I am available to respond to questions.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Fincher follows:]
Prepared Statement of Chief Luther L. Fincher, Jr., President,
International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC)
Mister Chairman, and members of the Committee, I am Luther Fincher,
chief of the Charlotte, NC Fire Department. I am appearing today as the
President of the International Association of Fire Chiefs (ICHIEFS).
The International Association of Fire Chiefs is a professional
association comprised of over 12,000 senior fire and emergency
officials in all fifty states. ICHIEFS provides a variety of services
to its members including the representation of America's fire
departments before the federal government.
Public policy positions are the result of consensus among members
as articulated by ICHIEFS' elected Board of Directors. ICHIEFS
maintains eight regional divisions and six special interest sections,
such as the volunteer chief officers and emergency medical services
sections. In addition, committees are formed to address specific issues
such as hazardous materials, health and safety, and communications.
These committees provide a forum for fire chiefs with relevant
expertise to formulate national solutions to problems that confront the
fire service.
The organization's president is elected at-large by the full
association membership and serves a term of one year. Each of sixteen
board members is elected regionally or by special interest section.
Founded in 1873, ICHIEFS and its 30-member staff are headquartered in
Fairfax, Virginia.
We appreciate the opportunity to testify before this Senate
Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation in support of S.
1941, the Firefighter Investment and Response Enhancement (FIRE) Act
authored by Senators DeWine and Dodd. We have previously testified in
the House of Representatives in strong support of HR 1168, a measure
similar to the Senate bill.
The legislative proposal to establish a federal grant program to
benefit the fire and emergency services has merit and a basis for
federal policy. It is important first, however, to understand the
mission and scope of America's fire and emergency services.
Mission of the Fire Service
The mission of America's fire service was clearly spelled out in
legislation that defined fire fighter activities. It passed in this
Congress and was recently enacted as Public Law 106-151. Fire fighter
is now defined in the Fair Labor Standards Act as an employee who: ``.
. . is engaged in the prevention, control, and extinguishment of fires
or response to emergency situations where life, property, or the
environment is at risk.'' The activities included are: ``fire fighter,
paramedic, emergency medical technician, rescue worker, ambulance
personnel, or hazardous materials worker.''
The image of the fire service is most often associated with fire
suppression activities. However, fire departments have evolved into
multi-hazard risk management and emergency response forces. The mission
has expanded to include a wide range of threats to public health and
safety and the fire department is expected to take whatever action is
necessary in any situation. The fire service has also become
increasingly involved in protecting the environment.
While the specific functions performed by different fire
departments vary considerably, the overall fire service mission can be
described as encompassing five primary areas:
1. Fire Suppression
2. Emergency Medical and Rescue Services
3. Hazard Control and Risk Abatement
4. Fire Prevention and Public Education
5. Enforcement of Fire and Safety Codes, Laws and Regulations
This broad definition of the fire service mission includes the
primary responsibility for emergency response and intervention in
situations that have the potential to harm persons or property, as well
as efforts to manage risks, reduce vulnerability to potential threats
and prepare for situations that could occur at some time in the future.
Fire Suppression--The United States has more fire suppression
capability, in terms of fire fighters, vehicles and equipment, than any
other industrialized nation. The United States also has a relatively
high rate of fires in comparison with other industrialized nations,
which tends to justify the emphasis on fire suppression capability. The
rate of fires is particularly high in low income areas and older urban
areas, many of which would be highly susceptible to very large and
damaging fires if they did not have effective fire fighting forces. The
U.S. also has an unacceptably high rate of fire fighter injury and
death.
The basic strategy of fire suppression combines rapid response to
control fires while they are small (offensive strategy), along with the
ability to confine and overwhelm any fires that exceed the capabilities
of the initial attack (defensive strategy). The great majority of fires
are successfully controlled, particularly in urban areas where fire
departments are generally deployed to respond within 3 to 5 minutes to
any fire that occurs--most structure fires do not spread beyond the
room of origin and few involve more than a single building. The total
capability of the fire suppression resources that are available in most
urban areas can confine or control very large fires.
The fire suppression capability does not always equal the level of
fire risk, particularly in smaller communities and rural areas. The
massive ``urban/wildland interface'' fires that often threaten suburban
areas and small communities in the western states, illustrate that the
combination of high winds, low humidity and limited water supplies can
overwhelm the capabilities of any fire suppression forces.
Emergency Medical Service--In most cities the fire department responds
to more medical calls than fires or any other types of incidents. Over
the past 20 years there has been a major shift by fire departments
toward providing emergency medical service (EMS), accompanied by very
significant advances in the accepted standards of emergency medical
care. Approximately 60 percent of the emergency medical service in the
United States is provided by fire department-based organizations.
This expansion of the mission has resulted in a large increase in
the total number of emergency responses by fire departments. In some
cases the fire suppression and emergency medical service functions are
fully integrated, with personnel trained and equipped to perform both
missions, while other fire departments have separate EMS or ambulance
divisions.
Where the fire department is not the primary provider of EMS, it is
often the ``first responder'' agency, working with a separate EMS
department or a private ambulance company. A ``first responder'' is
dispatched to situations where a patient's condition requires rapid
intervention and a fire suppression unit can reach the patient more
quickly than an ambulance. Whether it is the primary provider or a
first responder agency, the fire suppression force is likely to be a
major component of the medical response capability for a mass casualty
incident, as well as the primary rescue resource.
Rescue--In most areas the fire department is also responsible for
conducting rescue operations, which range from relatively simple to
highly complex and dangerous situations. All fire fighters have at
least basic rescue skills and many fire departments have rescue
companies that are trained and equipped to perform more complicated
rescue operations. There have been major advances in training,
equipment and technical skills related to rescue over the past two
decades, which have resulted in the development of many specialized
technical rescue teams for particular types of incidents.
The list of rescue specialties includes vehicle extrication,
confined space rescue, swift water and underwater rescue, urban search
and rescue (rescue of victims from collapsed structures), high angle
rope rescue, mountain rescue and several others. Specialized rescue
teams are usually developed to deal with the types of incidents that
are most likely to occur in a particular community or region. In many
cases the teams are made-up of individual fire fighters who have the
advanced training, while others involve fire suppression companies that
have been designated to perform specific technical rescue functions in
addition to their regular duties.
Hazard Control, Risk Abatement and Technical Operations--Fire
departments are generally responsible for the regulation and control of
other types of hazards particularly the transportation, storage,
handling and use of hazardous materials (hazmat). This includes the
responsibility for responding to incidents that involve spills and
releases of hazardous substances, which would also include terrorist
incidents that involve explosives, nuclear materials and biological or
chemical agents.
Some fire departments, particularly in major cities, have dedicated
hazardous materials units that specialize in performing the technical
response functions, while others have organized special teams similar
to the special rescue teams. Regional response teams often involve
participants from more than one fire department.
Fire Prevention & Public Education--During the past 20 years there has
been a significant decline in the number of fires and in the number of
fire deaths and injuries in the United States, most of which can be
attributed to improvements in fire prevention and public fire safety
education. Fire prevention measures decrease the level of fire risk by
eliminating hazards, requiring safe construction and ensuring that
systems to detect and control fires are installed and properly
maintained. Public education efforts are designed to increase public
awareness of hazards and to teach safe practices. Public education
programs have also become a vehicle to train the public in appropriate
self-help procedures and to develop community based response
capabilities for other types of emergency situations, such as
earthquakes and hurricanes.
Because of this success, the Federal Emergency Management Agency
asked the fire service to join in its Project Impact to help build
disaster-resistant communities. Just a year ago, ICHIEFS and numerous
other fire service organizations formed the Project Impact Fire
Services Partnership for Disaster Prevention. The goal is to broaden
the traditional fire prevention role of the fire service to assist the
comprehensive effort to build disaster-resistant communities.
Law Enforcement--The fire department is usually responsible for
investigating and determining the causes of fires, which is the first
step in most arson investigations. Some fire departments have full
responsibility for investigating arson, while others work with state
fire marshals or with police investigators on criminal cases. Federal
law enforcement agencies, particularly the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco
and Firearms and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), have
increased their involvement in arson cases and expanded their
relationships with local fire investigations units in recent years.
In addition to regulating the storage and use of explosives within
local jurisdictions, several fire departments are directly involved in
investigating bombings and some operate the local bomb squads. The fire
service is likely to be the first responding agency to terrorist
incidents to provide medical treatment, conduct search and rescue
operations, control fires and deal with explosives, chemical agents and
other types of hazards. This involvement in terrorist incidents
requires a close working relationship with investigating agencies to
identify, protect and recover evidence.
Many fire departments also work closely with the Drug Enforcement
Administration and other law enforcement agencies in shutting down drug
labs that utilize dangerous chemicals. Some fire departments have
assigned medical personnel to train with police SWAT teams and support
their operations.
The application of fire prevention codes, life safety codes and
building codes to limit the level of fire risk is an additional law
enforcement function. The fire service is also increasingly involved in
the enforcement of environmental protection regulations relating to the
storage and use of hazardous materials.
Fire Department Organization
The fire service exists in many different forms throughout the
United States and encompasses a very large number of individuals and
organizations. Although it is primarily associated with local emergency
response organizations, the fire service operates at all levels of
government as well as the private sector. The total size of the public
fire service is estimated at over 30,000 fire departments with
approximately 1.1 million members.
All major metropolitan cities in the United States and most cities
with more than 50,000 population are protected by municipal fire
departments and career fire fighters. The career fire service is
estimated to include about 3,000 fire departments and approximately
275,000 full-time paid fire fighters. The largest career fire
department has more than 11,000 full time employees (New York City),
while the majority have fewer than 50 employees.
Volunteer fire departments protect most of the rural areas and
smaller communities in the United States, as well as many of the
suburban areas surrounding large cities. There are estimated to be
approximately 27,000 volunteer fire departments and more than 800,000
volunteer fire fighters in the United States.
Some jurisdictions have what is known as combination fire
departments where both career and volunteer fire fighters form the fire
and emergency response. Two examples of combination departments near
Washington, DC are Montgomery County, MD and Fairfax County, VA. There
are many other examples across the country.
Most of the fire departments in the United States operate at the
local government level. However, there are many variations in their
organization and structure in different states and regions. Fire
department organization structures are often based on a combination of
history and tradition, as well as state legislation.
Local Government--Most career fire departments are organized as part of
a municipal government and supported by local tax revenues. The Fire
Chief usually reports directly to the Mayor or City Manager or to an
appointed Public Safety Director or Commissioner. While most towns and
cities operate their own fire departments, others have joined with
neighboring communities to operate unified fire departments and some
obtain services from a neighboring community or from a county or
regional fire department.
Fire districts are separate governmental bodies that are organized
specifically to collect and appropriate tax revenues for the limited
purpose of providing fire department services. Most fire districts are
established by counties to protect unincorporated areas and they often
have their own elected fire commissioners or appointed governing
bodies. Incorporated communities sometimes contract with fire districts
to serve their areas or delegate a portion of their local taxing
authority to a fire district to obtain their services. Fire districts
also have the option of contracting with another provider, such as a
nearby town or city, instead of operating their own fire department to
deliver the service.
The relationships between volunteer fire departments and local
governments are much more variable, particularly from state to state.
Volunteer fire departments are often established as independent non-
profit corporations and many are supported by non-tax revenues,
including a wide range of fund raising activities. In other cases they
are supported by fire district taxes or direct appropriations from
counties or municipalities.
In some states volunteer fire departments are established by state
charter and are independent of any local government authorities. While
there may be no direct structured relationship between the volunteer
organization and the local government, there is usually some form of
official authorization or delegation of responsibility to the volunteer
fire department to provide emergency services to the community. These
relationships are often based on local history and regional traditions.
Volunteer fire chiefs and officers are often elected by the members
of their departments, although their authority to act as public safety
officials is generally established through state legislation or through
official appointment by the local governmental body. In many cases an
elected volunteer fire chief has the same legal authority and
responsibilities as a fire chief who is appointed by the chief
executive of a city, town or county, although this varies considerably
with state and local laws.
Other Public Fire Departments--The federal government, many state
governments and other quasi-governmental bodies, such as airport
authorities and port authorities, also operate fire departments. Some
of these fire departments are highly specialized, such as airport fire
departments, while others are very similar to local fire departments.
The on-site fire departments often have reciprocal mutual aid
relationships with surrounding fire departments and some routinely
respond to calls in the immediate area around their facilities.
Each of the armed forces operates its own network of fire
departments to protect their larger bases and facilities. Several other
federal agencies operate fire departments to protect their large and
high risk facilities, particularly where the risks exceed the
capabilities of the local fire service. Local fire departments often
provide protection for federally owned and operated properties within
their geographic areas, including many smaller military installations.
Private Fire Protection--There are a few private companies that provide
fire department services as contractors to municipalities or fire
districts. Where there is no public fire protection, some of these
companies offer their services to individual property owners on a
subscription basis. The relationship of these private fire departments
with surrounding public fire departments is often limited.
Industrial Fire Departments--Many large industrial facilities operate
their own fire departments or fire brigades, particularly large
installations that involve exceptional risks or have special
requirements. These on-site fire departments protect many strategically
significant facilities, such as nuclear power stations, oil refineries
and chemical plants that require very specialized capabilities. The on-
site fire departments may have to be self-sufficient, particularly
where the location is geographically isolated or the risks are beyond
the capabilities of conventional fire departments. In a few areas,
where there are many facilities with their own fire departments, they
have established extensive mutual aid arrangements with each other,
similar to mutual aid agreements among public fire departments.
When the facility is located within a jurisdiction that has a
public fire department, the operations of the industrial fire
department are usually subject to the command authority of the local
fire chief, who has the legal responsibility to ensure that public
safety is the first priority. In addition to providing the expertise
and specialized equipment that may be essential for an on-site
emergency, these organizations can often be a valuable resource to the
public fire service--some participate in mutual aid networks as
specialized resources and respond outside their facilities to assist
public fire departments.
This fairly describes the mission of the fire service. It is
apparent that the fire service is multifaceted and, indeed, an all-risk
emergency response service.
Federal Government Relationships
Operational--The federal government has a major role in relation to
emergency management and disaster planning, as well as the response to
and recovery from declared disasters. The Federal Emergency Management
Agency (FEMA) manages the disaster assistance programs that support and
assist state and local jurisdictions when a federal disaster is
declared. When this occurs a strong temporary relationship is often
established with the local fire service, particularly where the fire
chief is also responsible for a community's emergency management
functions.
In most cases the mobilization of local resources to assist in
disaster response and recovery operations is coordinated through state
emergency management agencies. FEMA operates the Urban Search and
Rescue (USAR) Program, which involves 27 locally based response teams.
The USAR teams can be dispatched to major incidents anywhere in the
United States that involve heavy rescue operations, such as collapsed
buildings. Most of the USAR teams are operated by fire departments and
fire department members are involved in all of the teams. These teams
are an integral component of the response plan for earthquakes and
hurricanes, as well as major terrorist incidents, such as the Oklahoma
City bombing.
FEMA also includes the United States Fire Administration and its
National Fire Academy, which are responsible for several programs and
advanced education opportunities for the fire service. Both of these
agencies are located at the National Emergency Training Center in
Emmitsburg, Maryland, which is also the focal point for training state
and local officials in emergency management. The U.S. Fire
Administration programs provide valuable assistance to local fire
departments, but the agency does not directly fund, regulate or
participate in the delivery of fire services.
Several other federal agencies have programs that support or
involve relationships with the fire service. These include the
Department of Transportation, which is particularly involved with
hazardous materials transportation, as well as the Coast Guard and the
Environmental Protection Agency, which are concerned with spills and
releases of hazardous materials. The Department of Energy works with
FEMA in providing training programs for emergency responders relating
to radioactive materials. The Federal Aviation Administration provides
funding for many airport fire departments and conducts research related
to aircraft fire fighting and rescue operations.
The Department of Transportation supports emergency medical
services through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
The Public Health Service is also involved in supporting emergency
medical services and recently initiated the Metropolitan Medical
Response Systems (MMRS) program, which involves fire departments in
several metropolitan areas.
The Department of Justice is working with fire departments on
counterterrorism training programs. The Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and
Firearms and the FBI both work with local fire investigators on arson
investigations, bombings and related cases, and the Drug Enforcement
Administration has a relationship with many fire department hazardous
materials teams due to the problem of hazardous chemicals that are
involved in many drug labs. The Department of Justice also operates the
Public Safety Officer Benefits Program, which covers deceased and
disabled firefighters.
The Department of Defense under the Nunn/Lugar/Domenici Amendment
will provide training to the fire departments of 120 major metropolitan
areas to plan and prepare for terrorist activities that involve
nuclear, chemical and biological agents. This program will end once all
120 jurisdictions receive the training. In the meantime, the program
will be turned over to the Department of Justice for management on
October 1, 2000. The fire departments that are operated by the
Department of Defense often work closely with local fire departments
and provide a valuable back-up resource for many communities. The
Department of Defense has also assisted fire departments in training
with explosive devices and sponsors many research projects that have
proven to be valuable to the public fire service.
The federal and state governments have the primary responsibility
for fighting wildland fires, particularly on state and federal lands.
The forces that provide wildland fire protection are usually seen as a
separate branch of the fire service and have a fairly limited
relationship to the fire departments that protect most urban and built-
up areas, although it is not unusual for urban fire departments to
become involved in wildland interface fire fighting operations. Some
local fire departments have contractual agreements to provide the
initial attack on wildland fires on state or federal lands and
participate in the nationwide system for major wildland fires.
Regulatory--The federal government has a number of administrative
regulations which impact upon the fire service. Some of these
regulations have been supported by the fire service such as OSHA's
respiratory protection standard, hazardous materials response, and
bloodborne pathogens. Other regulations such as EPA's emissions
standards which significantly affect the costs of diesel engines and
the FCC authority over wireless radio systems used by emergency
responders are merely adhered to. But each federal regulation brings
with it a cost to the fire department in terms of training
requirements, additional equipment needs, and increased purchase price
for apparatus and equipment. These are basically unfunded mandates
where local government entities or volunteer fire and rescue companies
bear the costs.
Fire Service Part of U.S. Infrastructure
Three years ago, the Presidential Commission on Protection of the
Critical Infrastructure identified the fire service as a key component
of the protection of this country's critical infrastructure. The
Commission declared the fire service an integral part of that
infrastructure. The fire service is, in fact, part of the very fabric
of America.
But today's fire service is no longer penned-in by jurisdictional
boundaries. Most metropolitan areas have mutual aid agreements which
routinely find fire companies operating outside their jurisdiction.
There is an increase in highway incidents along the federal interstate
highway systems to which local units respond. Increased cargo tonnage
moving by truck, rail, ship and aircraft are increasing not only as a
result of business expansion but from international trade agreements
approved by the federal government. This increase in commerce is
directly associated with increased incidents requiring emergency
response. This is particularly true in the instances of response to
hazardous materials incidents.
ICHIEFS Calls for Federal Grant Program
Mister Chairman, I have described the mission of the fire and
emergency service. Our service covers the entire United States,
protects the property therein, and serves virtually every citizen and
visitor in this country. The fire and emergency service is an all
hazards response service including some aspects of law enforcement. The
Presidential Commission on Protection of the Critical Infrastructure
identified five components of the U.S. critical infrastructure.
America's fire and emergency service protects all segments of that
critical infrastructure and is part of that critical infrastructure
responsible for the continuance of government. And this is so, not just
because a commission says so, but because it is the reality.
We are our nation's domestic defenders. We are based locally but
willingly share a national responsibility to protect our nation from
all forms of disaster--natural and manmade, large and small. Congress
needs to understand the breadth in scope and the depth in impact of
today's fire service which touches every part of our nation. And
Congress needs to support this service with a federal grant program
that promotes the safety and health of the emergency responders to
assure that they can better serve the citizens and our nation.
Thank you for the opportunity to appear before this Committee. I am
prepared to answer any questions which you or the members of your
Committee may have.
The Chairman. Thank you very much, Chief Fincher.
Mr. Monihan.
STATEMENT OF E. JAMES MONIHAN, FORMER CHAIRMAN, CURRENT
DIRECTOR, STATE OF DELAWARE, NATIONAL VOLUNTEER FIRE COUNCIL
(NVFC)
Mr. Monihan. Good morning, Mr. McCain and Mr. Kerry. I am
James Monihan, former Chairman of the National Volunteer Fire
Council, and now serve as its Director representing the State
of Delaware. I am also a firefighter in Lewes, Delaware Fire
Department with 43 years service, and continue to respond to
alarms.
During my career, I have had experience in all facets of
the life of fire and EMS personnel, from firefighting and all
types of rescue, through hazardous materials, the ambulance
service and, yes, the cat in a tree. The volunteer service also
has a unique facet, that of administration, since firefighters
in the volunteer service are the department.
The entire fire service needs your help, and it is a
distinct privilege to be here before you today to bring you our
message on behalf of the National Volunteer Fire Council. It is
the voice of the 850,000 men and women who staff some 28,000
volunteer departments in every state of the Union. There is no
doubt that we need financial assistance and, believe me, I have
experience in the last 43 years of asking for it. I have gone
door-to-door. I have spent Saturday afternoons sitting by a
collection can next to an ambulance in a shopping center, and I
have seen other volunteers pass collection boots at traffic
lights while it is red.
In fact, we had a department who did not have a traffic
light, so they stopped traffic. Some people do not have a sense
of humor, so they got into a little trouble, but they got the
job done.
Ingenuity, however only goes so far. One of the largest
problems faced by America's fire service is funding. Most
volunteer departments serve small, rural communities, and are
the only line of defense. Unfortunately, these departments are
struggling to provide their members with adequate protective
clothing, safety devices, and training.
At the same time, the federal government is asking the fire
service to respond to calls involving terrorism, hazardous
materials, natural and manmade disasters, urban and wildland
interface fires. Many of these emergencies occur on federal
property such as national parks, buildings, and lands.
Your investment in the fire service in this case ultimately
protects the Federal property from fire losses and human
tragedy. In this instance, your support can be viewed as
payment for services rendered, the same as a homeowner who
gives a contribution or buys a ticket to a fundraiser for the
volunteer fire department.
In addition, when federal dollars are used to build new
interstate highways, they usually run through small communities
protected by volunteer departments. These small-town fire
companies must now respond to a huge influx of auto accidents,
many involving hazardous materials. They are already struggling
to handle their own needs and finances, and are now forced to
provide more services and receive no financial assistance for
their responses.
Many rural departments operate on budgets of less than
$10,000 a year. On that small budget it is very difficult to
pay for insurance premiums, buy fuel, and upkeep of equipment,
much less buy new equipment. These departments often are using
fire trucks from the 1950's and 1960's as first response
vehicles, and self-contained breathing apparatus that should
have been taken out of service long ago, according to NFPA
standards. It is old, but it is all they have.
An example of how a lack of equipment and training can lead
to tragedy happened on April 6, 1999, when two firefighters
lost their lives trying to escape a wildland fire burning
outside of Morehead, Kentucky, on the edge of the Daniel Boone
National Forest.
Subsequently, specialists from the National Institute of
Occupational Safety & Health, NIOSH, investigated the incident,
and they concluded that to minimize similar occurrences fire
departments engaged in wildland firefighting should provide
firefighters with wildland personal protective equipment. They
should equip them with approved fire shelters and provide
training on the proper use of the fire shelters, and we
certainly agree with that.
But we are also confident that an increase in Federal
funding is the only way a small department such as this could
possibly purchase the equipment and provide the training needed
to comply with NIOSH's recommendations.
By the way, we all fight wildland fires. The gear is
costly, and unfortunately you just have to make a choice. There
are departments like this in every state across this country.
It is ironic that all the federal agencies and, yes, even
Congress, can adopt mandates for the fire service. However,
these departments are the only line of defense in those
communities, and if they cannot meet those mandates and
standards, what happens then?
The funding problems in America's volunteer service are not
just limited to rural areas. The suburbs continue to grow, as
Senator Hollings said earlier. So does the burden on the local
fire and EMS departments. Even though many of these departments
have the essentials, they are unable to gain access to new
technologies.
At no time in our history have advances been greater in
equipment to protect the firefighter and make his job easier,
or her job easier--pardon me--yet because newer technology is
so expensive many departments are not able to purchase it.
For instance, there are personal assisted safety signal
devices that can be attached to a firefighter. The PASS will
emit a loud signal if the firefighter is trapped or becomes
disabled.
There are thermal imaging cameras to locate victims in
smoke, global position systems which allow dispatchers to
dispatch the closest fire department to the fire, fiber optic
ropes that contain tiny lights to lead a firefighter as he
retraces his way out of the smoke-filled structures, and
compressed air foam, a fire-retardant that increases the
surface area of water, helping to extinguish fires three to
five times more quickly.
Unfortunately, most volunteer departments are unable to
take advantage of this new technology because of budget
restraints. Do you have any idea how many pancake breakfasts it
takes to buy a $25,000 imaging camera? Many departments can
tell you, because that is how they bought it.
These constant fundraising demands also are intertwined in
every aspect of the volunteer fire and emergency services,
affecting the recruitment, retention of members, and the
ability to train them, because they eat up a very valuable
commodity called time.
The volunteer fire service represents a national resource
of enormous value that must be supported and nurtured. This
Committee and the Senate as a whole can make great strides in
supporting us through the Fire Investment and Response
Enforcement, or FIRE Act.
When I began my testimony, I stated the volunteer fire
service is in need of your assistance, and that you, as Members
of the Senate, could make a difference with the necessary
funding. I hope I have painted a picture that illustrates that
need as real, that the moneys do go a long way--we can squeeze
a dollar--and that the support of the fire service by Congress
is, indeed, a national concern.
Finally, we recommend that any funding that Congress
provides for the fire service be handled in a manner similar to
the volunteer fire assistance program. In that program, almost
all the moneys appropriated go to the intended purpose in the
fire service, because it is structured in a way that the
funding cannot be diverted and is not eaten up with
administrative fees.
Thank you for your attention. Thank you for the
opportunity, and if you have any questions I would be glad to
answer them.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Monihan follows:]
Prepared Statement of E. James Monihan, Former Chairman, Current
Director, State of Delaware, National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC)
Mr. Chairman and members of the Committee, my name is James
Monihan. I am the Former Chairman of the National Volunteer Fire
Council (NVFC) and currently serve as their Delaware State Director. I
am also a firefighter in the Lewes Fire Department in Lewes, Delaware.
I have served as a volunteer firefighter for 43 years and still respond
regularly to calls. I have had experience in all phases of the life of
a first responder, including chemical and hazardous materials
incidents, EMS, rescue and fire. On behalf of the volunteer fire
service, I appreciate the opportunity to comment on the needs of
America's volunteer fire service addressed in S. 1941, the Firefighter
Investment and Response Enhancement (FIRE) Act. The National Volunteer
Fire Council strongly supports passage of this piece of legislation,
which currently has 32 bipartisan cosponsors in the Senate and 276 in
the House. America's fire and emergency services are in need of your
assistance and you, as Members of Congress, can make a difference with
the necessary funding.
The NVFC represents the interests of the nation's more than 800,000
volunteer firefighters, who staff America's 28,000 volunteer fire
departments located in every state of the Union. According to the
National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), nearly 75% of all
firefighters are volunteer. More than half of the approximately one
hundred firefighters that are killed each year in the line of duty are
volunteers. In addition to the obvious contribution that volunteer
firefighters lend to their communities, these brave men and women
represent a significant cost saving to taxpayers. A 1991 study
commissioned by the National Institute of Standards and Technology
(NIST) concluded that it would cost taxpayers $36.8 billion each year
to convert volunteer fire departments to career departments. According
to a September 1999 study by the State Auditor of my home state of
Delaware, the volunteer fire service in Delaware saves taxpayers more
than $116 million per year.
One of the largest problems faced by America's volunteer fire
service is funding. Most volunteer departments serve small, rural
communities and are quite often the only line of defense in those
communities. Unfortunately, these departments are struggling to provide
their members with adequate protective clothing, safety devices and
training to protect their communities.
At the same time, the federal government is asking the fire service
to respond to calls involving terrorism, hazardous materials, natural
and man-made disasters and wildland/urban interface fires. Many of
these emergencies occur on federal properties such as national parks
and lands. Wild fires that are kept small are less expensive to
extinguish and cause much less damage. Your investment in the services
of these rural fire departments ultimately protects federal and private
lands from fire losses and human tragedies. In this instance, your
support can be viewed as payment for services rendered the same as a
homeowner who gives a contribution or buys a ticket to a fundraiser for
their volunteer fire department.
In addition, when federal dollars are used to build new interstate
highways, they often run through small communities protected by a
volunteer fire department. These small town fire companies must respond
to huge influx of auto accidents, some involving hazardous materials.
They are already struggling to handle their own needs and finances, and
are now forced to provide more services, and receive no compensation
for their responses.
Many rural departments operate on budgets of less than $10,000 per
year. On that small budget, it is very difficult for these departments
to pay for insurance premiums, fuel, and upkeep of equipment, much less
buy new equipment. These departments are using fire trucks from the
1950s and 60s and self-contained breathing apparatus that should have
been taken out of service a long time ago according to NFPA standards.
In some counties, it can take up to 40 minutes for an ambulance to
arrive and as long as an hour and 10 minutes for a rescue tool,
commonly called ``the Jaws of Life,'' to get to the scene of a car
accident. Some departments have only one or two radios and no alerting
system. When there is an emergency call for them, the county Sheriff's
Department notifies them by telephone. If they are not near their
phone, they've missed the call.
On April 6, 1999, two volunteer firefighters died while trying to
escape a wildland fire burning outside of Morehead, Kentucky.
Subsequently, two Safety and Occupational Health Specialists from the
National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH), Division
of Safety Research, investigated the incident. They concluded that, to
minimize similar occurrences, fire departments engaged in wildland
firefighting should provide firefighters with wildland personal
protective equipment (PPE) that is compliant with NFPA standards, they
should equip firefighters with approved fire shelters and provide
training on the proper use of the fire shelters, and they should learn,
communicate, and follow the 10 standard fire orders as developed by the
National Wildfire Coordinating Group (NWCG). The NVFC is confident that
an increase in federal funding is the only way a small volunteer
department such as this one could purchase the equipment and provide
the training needed to comply with NIOSH's recommendations.
There are departments like this in every congressional district
across this country. It is ironic that all of the federal agencies and
even Congress can adopt mandates on the fire service. However, these
departments are the only line of defense in these communities and if
they can't meet these mandates, what happens?
The funding problems in America's volunteer fire service are not
just limited to rural areas. As suburbs continue to grow, so does the
burden on the local fire and EMS department. Even though many of these
departments have the essentials, they are unable to gain access to new
technologies. At no other time have advances been greater in equipment
to protect them and make their jobs safer. Yet because the newer
technology is so expensive, many volunteer fire departments are forced
to use outdated equipment.
For instance, many firefighters can now wear an encapsulated
ensemble of fireproof gear, along with lined helmets that absorb shock,
and hoods that protect exposed head and neck parts. There's also a
Personal Assisted Safety Signal, or PASS, device that is attached to
the firefighter. The PASS will emit a loud signal if the firefighter
gets trapped or becomes disabled. Older versions required firefighters
to sound the device themselves. Newer models sound a 110-decible alarm
if a firefighter remains motionless for 25 seconds. Each PASS device
sells for $125.
Instead of the traditional gear that weighs between 40 and 60
pounds, lighter weight air bottles and materials have lightened
firefighters' loads, decreasing their physical stress. However, turnout
gear costs more than $1,000 per set and self-contained breathing
apparatus are close to $3,000 each.
Perhaps the best advance in fire equipment in the past 25 years--
and the most expensive--is the thermal imaging camera. The cameras,
which can cost up to $25,000, are used to distinguish items of various
temperatures in a smoke-filled room. Firefighters can make out a human
body through thick smoke or can hone in on fire ``hot spots'' without
having to tear entire structures apart. Older models were mounted on
helmets; newer versions are hand held, adding flexibility to searches.
Other advances include Global Positioning Systems, which allow
dispatchers to send out fire companies nearest to a fire; fiber-optic
ropes, which contain tiny lights to help firefighters retrace their way
out of smoke-filled structures; and compressed air foam, a fire
retardant that increases the surface area of water, helping to
extinguish fires three to five times more quickly.
Unfortunately, many volunteer fire departments are unable to take
advantage of this new technology because of budget restraints. Do you
know how many pancake breakfasts it takes to buy a $25,000 piece of
equipment? Many departments can tell you, because that's how they pay
for it. These constant fundraising demands are intertwined into every
aspect of volunteer fire and emergency services, affecting the
recruitment of new members, the retention of existing members, and the
ability to train members.
This legislation will allow departments to more adequately equip
and train their firefighters, thereby increasing the safety level of
the communities they protect. In addition, federal funding of local
fire companies represents a form of local taxpayer relief. Also, as
departments become better equipped, their Insurance Services Office
(ISO) rating goes down, in turn lowering the insurance rates of the
community's homeowners. The volunteer fire service represents a
national resource of enormous value that must be supported and nurtured
if it is to continue to fulfill its critical role in emergency services
response. This Committee and Congress can do its part by supporting the
Firefighter Investment and Response Enhancement (FIRE) Act.
When I began my testimony today, I stated that the volunteer fire
service is in need of your assistance and that you, as Members of
Congress, could make a difference with the necessary funding. I hope
that I have painted a picture that illustrates that the need is real,
that the moneys do go a long way, and that the support of the fire
service by Congress is indeed a national concern.
Mr. Chairman, I thank you for your time and your attention to the
views of America's fire service, and I would be happy to answer any
questions you may have.
The Chairman. Thank you, sir. Mr. Billy Shields. Good to
see you, sir. I just saw in the newspaper where we have 3 fires
going on in the state of Arizona as we speak.
STATEMENT OF BILLY SHIELDS, VICE PRESIDENT, PROFESSIONAL FIRE
FIGHTERS OF ARIZONA
Mr. Shields. We have our hands full, sir. I want to thank
you also for holding this hearing. As you know, I am a Captain
in the Phoenix Fire Department. I have served on a frontline
fire pumper for 21 years. I am also the Vice President of the
Professional Fire Fighters of Arizona, which is an affiliate of
the International Association of Fire Fighters.
I greatly appreciate this opportunity to appear before you
today on behalf of the IAFF's 230,000 professional firefighters
and emergency medical personnel to discuss the need for funding
to protect firefighter health and safety. I would like to ask,
Mr. Chairman, that you include my written comments in the
record.
The Chairman. Without objection.
Mr. Shields. I would like to depart from it in the context
that I would like to try and address some of the concerns that
you raised in your opening remarks, but first I would like to
point to the fact that as the chiefs have expressed, and the
panel before, is that we know there is a need today. It is not
an if, and it is not a guess. We know that there is a need
today, and Arizona is no exception.
Of the 51 full time professional firefighters, fire
departments in Arizona, all but 6 are short in one of the
essential areas of minimum staffing, apparatus, equipment
maintenance or training provided to new hires. Of the
firefighters that died in the line of duty last year, and the
ones investigated by NIOSH, every one of those deaths were
found to have correctable problems based on one of these areas.
Over half of the fire departments in Arizona frequently do
not have sufficient personnel to mount a safe interior attack
on a fire by OSHA standards, which is simply 4 people on the
scene at the time of the entry so that 2 can go in and 2 can
remain outside to monitor the building and be there to rescue
the firefighters, if they themselves get in trouble. Nearly 75
percent of the departments in Arizona do not have the money to
provide new hires with the most basic training that is
recommended by the National Fire Protection Administration
Association.
Let me talk for a minute about specific examples. Nogales,
Arizona, you know is a border community, population of 30,000
people, but the needs for service there far outstrip any
jurisdiction that is that size. The daytime population of
Nogales swells to 75 to 100,000 people, and they have a mutual
aid agreement with Nogales, Mexico, across the border, which
has a population of a half a million people.
Increasingly, Nogales is having more and more hazardous
materials transported to the tune of millions of tons a year
through their cities. Nogales, Arizona, only has 3 fire
pumpers, each one of them is short staffed by 1 person every
shift every day of the year. They have only 5 trained hazardous
materials technicians for the whole city, and all of them are
not on duty at one time, and their equipment is woefully short.
They do not even have the simple gauges that can test the
air for signs of leaking fuel and leaking chemicals, and what
equipment that they do have is carried in the back of a horse
trailer pulled by a brush truck, and as the chiefs and the
Congressmen before pointed out, the fire service has always
been very creative and used the best that we have, but these
are things I think that we are here today to talk about and
that you should know.
In Flagstaff, it is a community that we all know in
northern Arizona, a small community again but millions of
people passing through it every day at the juncture of two
interstates. People on the way to the Grand Canyon, Las Vegas
or Mexico. They, too, are short staffed by a person every day
and cannot afford training for their folks.
El Mirage, which is a ring community of Maricopa County,
pays their firefighters on the average of $25,000 a year,
cannot even afford decent protective clothing for their
firefighters to the point where their firefighters are going
out and buying their own at the cost of up to a thousand
dollars apiece.
Now, we can go on and on about specific examples in
Arizona, but my point is it is not just Arizona, it is
national, and I believe that it is a national problem. I do not
believe it fully falls under the Federal government, but I
believe that part of the burden does. I traveled with the urban
search and rescue team from Phoenix to the Oklahoma City
bombing.
Our team was on the scene within 8 hours of the explosion
preparing to shore up that building for search and rescue
operations and sifting through the rubble for victims, and at
the end of a shift when we would leave the building and walk
down the sidewalks, people of Oklahoma stood on the sidelines
and offered us thanks and cookies and sandwiches and drinks of
water.
No one questioned that that was an appropriate response of
the Federal government, and I believe that it goes even
further. I believe that the small communities are not able to
provide the types of training and education, protection, and
staffing that makes the firefighters themselves safe in order
that they can protect their communities.
Let me address for 1 second this notion of what are state
and local governments doing. I can speak to that very well
because we have been working on this in Arizona for a long
time. As you know, Arizona has a shared revenue form of tax
collection where they share back with the cities to help
support local services. The larger cities have been able to do
pretty well with that, and in a few of them we have augmented
it by going to the voters and asking to increase the sales tax
by a tenth of a percent to support public safety, which is
police and fire, the lion's share of that going to police.
I am not complaining about our services in those cities,
but in Nogales the same thing was done. They passed the tenth
of a percent sales tax. It is just simply not enough of a tax
base there to give them an adequate fire service and response
in that city. Additionally, when we approach the legislature of
Arizona, we have always had to defend the shared revenue
formula because in good budget years where there's surpluses,
there's always a move to reduce the shared revenue formula and
hold cities to a flat dollar amount rather than a percentage,
so we are defending what we have there.
We are not able to ask for additional amounts, and you also
know that the pressing issues of the day in Arizona have been
education because of the lawsuits that the state has lost
causing the equalization of school construction finance and the
legislature appropriating 2 years ago $150 million for that to
find out only that that was woefully short, that the cost of
school construction and equalization in Arizona is going to be
closer to a billion dollars, and additionally the popular move
for tax cuts.
These are the things that we face. It is not that we have
not tried. These are the things we face and the real concerns,
and I would submit that state by state, firefighters are
working with their cities and with their legislatures to try
and improve their service and try and eke out the funding that
they need.
In closing, Mr. Chairman, I would just like to say that the
real issue here today is the health and safety of America's
firefighters and our ability to protect lives and property. All
this talk about states' roles and federal roles and agencies'
jurisdictions, obscures what the bill is about. Firefighters
are dying. We can prove that. We can prove that there is a
need, Mr. Chairman, and because the government cannot find the
money to protect them, and that alone should be sufficient
reason to enact S. 1941 without delay.
I thank you for your attention to our views, and I would be
happy to answer any questions you may have, and I understand
the firefighters in Manchester treated you to a bowl of chili,
and I would like to make a standing invitation to you and your
family to come to station 1 in downtown Phoenix for a green
chili burro dinner.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Shields follows:]
Prepared Statement of Billy Shields, Vice President,
Professional Fire Fighters of Arizona
Introduction
Mr. Chairman. My name is Billy Shields. I am a Captain in the
Phoenix, Arizona Fire Department and the Vice President of the
Professional Fire Fighters of Arizona, an affiliate of the
International Association of Fire Fighters. I greatly appreciate this
opportunity to appear before you today on behalf of the IAFF's 230,000
professional fire fighters and emergency medical personnel to discuss
the need for funding to protect fire fighter health and safety.
Mr. Chairman, each year our nation's fire fighters respond to
millions of calls for help from our fellow Americans. These calls range
from fires to hazardous materials incidents to search and rescue
operations to emergency medical care. Every day we put our lives on the
line to protect the safety and property of our fellow citizens. In the
last year, more than 100 of our brothers and sisters have made the
ultimate sacrifice. The job of fire fighting is the most dangerous in
the world, and we accept that. But we can not accept that our safety is
being recklessly and needlessly endangered because too many fire
departments are unable to provide the most basic training, equipment
and staffing.
Like most of my brother and sister fire fighters, I have attended
too many funerals. The knowledge that many of these deaths were
preventable angers me just as it ought to anger all Americans. In every
one of its investigations into fire fighter fatalities, the National
Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) found correctable
problems. Proper training and equipment, adequate staffing, and other
programs save fire fighters' lives. Unfortunately, too many
jurisdictions are unable to provide these basic protections.
The Need
Arizona
America's fire service is in crisis due to extreme funding
shortfalls, and Arizona is no exception. Of the 51 full-time
professional fire departments, all but 6 appear to be deficient in an
essential area, such as minimum safe staffing levels, apparatus and
equipment maintenance, and training provided to new hires.
More than half of our departments either always or frequently do
not have sufficient personnel to mount a safe interior fire attack.
This puts us in the position of either having to await the arrival of
additional personnel or endanger the lives of the fire fighters at the
scene by commencing the attack without adequate back up support.
Nearly 75% of our departments do not provide new hires with the
basic level of training identified by the National Fire Protection
Association (NFPA) as necessary to perform the job of a fire fighter
safely and effectively. These jurisdictions lack funds for instructors,
training equipment and training facilities. Throughout the state, fire
fighters essentially receive on-the-job training, a situation which
endangers not only the lives of the new hires but their fellow fire
fighters and the public.
Nogales
Nogales is a border community of approximately 30,000, but the
demands on the fire department far outstrip many comparable sized
jurisdictions. An extremely busy port of entry, the daytime population
swells to an estimated 75,000-100,000 people. In addition, the fire
department has a mutual aid agreement with the neighboring city of
Nogales, Mexico which has a population of least half a million people.
The Nogales fire department has two ladder companies, one of which
is currently not in use due to lack of funding. The apparatus that is
in use is over 20 years old, and in need of maintenance. The department
staffs 3 engine companies, all of which run one person short every
shift. The department shares one mechanic and one shop to maintain its
aging apparatus with several other city departments.
Nogales is a hub for hazardous materials transport, both by rail
and by truck, with millions of tons of dangerous cargo passing through
the community each year--much of it crossing an international border.
For example, the fire department is required to escort 40,000 pound
truckloads of ammonium nitrate through the city to the border on a
weekly basis.
And yet, the fire department has been able to afford the training
of only five hazmat technicians. There is no dedicated hazmat unit, and
the equipment is either substandard or non-existent. Hazmat equipment
is carried on a horse trailer pulled by an aging brush truck.
In order to meet even bare minimum safety requirements, the fire
chief of Nogales estimates the need for a minimum of 45 additional fire
fighters, with at least a dozen cross-trained as hazmat technicians.
Hazmat emergency response equipment, additional maintenance personnel,
and various pieces of apparatus are also urgent necessities.
Flagstaff
Flagstaff is a high desert community of 60,000 that sits at the
junction of two interstate highways, I-40 and I-17. The fire department
is responsible not only for the safety of the citizens of the
community, but also the millions of travelers and commercial vehicles
passing through on their way to the Grand Canyon, historic Route 66,
and Mexico. In addition, the community has dealt with devastating
forest fires and faced difficult rescue missions when blizzards hit the
11,000 foot peaks.
Every engine and ladder company in Flagstaff is currently running
one person short every shift. At least 24 fire fighters are needed to
meet minimum safe staffing levels. The community can not afford to
provide new hires with basic fire fighter training.
Bisbee
A once thriving mining community and now a popular tourist
destination, Bisbee is a historical and cultural treasure. The aging
town's charm, however, provides special challenges to its fire
department. The old buildings are especially fire prone, and packed
closely together on narrow, winding streets. The city's water supply
system is more than a century old.
The Bisbee fire department has no Ladder truck, and does not have
enough personnel for two engine companies. Most fire fighters are
wearing personal protective equipment that is 9-10 years old, and
little money is available for training. The city has no hazmat
technicians or equipment, and can not afford to perform necessary
maintenance on its aging apparatus.
El Mirage
The economically challenged city of El Mirage is struggling to
provide the most basic fire protection. The fire department often runs
engines with only two fire fighters, and has been unable to replace
defective turnout gear for its fire fighters. Some fire fighters,
fearing for their own safety, have paid for a turnout ensemble out of
their own pocket at a cost of over $1000.
The United States
Mr. Chairman, I wish I could tell you that Arizona was unique in
this dire need for funding for fire departments. The shocking truth is,
we are sadly representative of the nation.
Early this year the IAFF, which represents more than 90% of all the
professional fire departments in the nation, conducted a survey of its
State Associations. Twenty-two states participated in the survey,
representing 1364 fire departments (54% of all IAFF Locals).
Among the survey's findings:
77% of fire departments operate with staffing levels below
what is needed for safe fireground operations.
43% of fire departments are in need of additional turnout
gear (i.e. coats, gloves, helmets and boots).
50% of fire departments are in need of additional
respirators.
70% of fire departments do not have adequate maintenance
programs for their protective gear.
66% of fire departments are in need of better communications
equipment.
66% of fire departments are in need of additional training.
59% of fire departments have poorly ventilated fire stations
which expose fire fighters to dangerous diesel fumes on a daily
basis.
The Federal Government's Role
I am aware of the argument that the problems I've been describing
are local problems and should be addressed at the state and local
level. Congress is rightfully reluctant to fund a service without
assurance that states and localities are doing what they can.
But please understand, Mr. Chairman, we are not asking for the
federal government to become the major--or even a major--funder of
America's fire service. Local and state governments should continue to
be the primary providers of fire service funding. But the federal
government, too, has a role to play and a responsibility to shoulder
its fair share of the financial burden of protecting Americans.
Every day fire departments across the nation engage in emergency
response activities that are national in scope. When a terrorist kills
hundreds of federal employees in Oklahoma City, or when wildland fires
devastate communities in New Mexico, these are national issues. When a
trailer carrying hazardous materials overturns on an interstate
highway, or when border inspectors discover leaking chemicals in a rail
car coming from Mexico, these are national issues. When a fire
threatens a Native American reservation or hikers are injured in the
Rocky Mountains, these are national issues.
Moreover, the argument that local government functions should be
funded exclusively at the state and local level flies in the face of
reality. The federal government spends billions of dollars every year
to support such local government functions as law enforcement,
education and roads. States and local governments remain the primary
funders of these activities, but the federal government has long
acknowledged that it, too, has an obligation to shoulder some of the
responsibility.
Providing federal funding for a wide variety of local government
services, while denying any support for the fire service based on the
argument that it is a local responsibility is tantamount to
discriminating against me because I am a fire fighter. Teachers and
cops are not told ``go talk to your Governor,'' so why should I be?
Finally, it is important to stress that we would not be asking the
federal government for assistance if we did not believe that states and
localities were already doing their share. Of course, I want them to do
more, but it would be misleading for anyone to suggest that states and
localities are apathetic to the needs of the fire service.
In Arizona, the state distributes a certain percentage of all tax
receipts to localities to pay for various local services including fire
protection. Realizing this was not sufficient, many communities--
including Phoenix, Nogales, Tempe and Glendale--have approved the
assessment of a special tax on themselves to fund public safety
services. On some of the Native American reservations, a portion of the
proceeds from legalized gaming has been devoted to public safety.
But this is still not enough. It is especially difficult for those
of us in states such as Arizona to raise additional revenue. As you are
well aware, Mr. Chairman, our state has a strong individualist
tradition, that is skeptical of all forms of government. We are
currently facing a ballot referendum to abolish the state income tax--
which accounts for 50% of all state revenue. This will have a
devastating impact on fire protection.
No, Mr. Chairman, it is not enough to say that fire protection is a
state and local responsibility. The federal government has a role too,
and it is past time to shoulder its share of responsibility.
Conclusion
Allow me to end, Mr. Chairman, by going back to what this issue is
really all about: the health and safety of America's true heroes, our
domestic defenders, our fire fighters. All this talk about state roles
and federal roles, and this agency's jurisdiction and that agency's
responsibilities, obscures what this bill is all about.
Fire fighters are dying, Mr. Chairman, because the government can
not find the money to protect them. That alone should be sufficient
reason to enact S. 1941 without delay.
I thank you for your attention to our views, and I will be happy to
answer any questions you may have.
The Chairman. You send me the invitation, and I will be
there.
Mr. Shields. You have got it.
The Chairman. If you promise not to make me work out with
them. In my declining years, it is not something that I look
forward to, and I mean that. I am very impressed by the
physical condition of your firefighters. It is quite
remarkable, and I know it is very important with some of the
very difficult tasks they face.
Also, again, I do not mean to sound parochial, but you
represent one of the fastest growing places in America, which
makes it increasingly difficult to keep up with the fires and
emergencies that take place in a place that is, I believe, the
fastest growing part of the United States of America, certainly
the valley is and I know that has added financial burdens on
the firefighting capabilities in our valley in Arizona as well
as other parts of the state.
I think you made a very good point about on the border, and
perhaps we ought to look at it in this legislation because the
same problem exists in San Diego, the same problem exists in
parts of Texas, all across our border we have relatively small
cities, and I say that, relatively, and very huge populations
on the other side of the border with certainly tragically much
lower standards, codes of construction, et cetera, and many
times they are called upon and there is no place to help, and
there is no place in the budget for that, so I think that is
something that I think we would appreciate all the witnesses'
input into as to how we can address that serious problem. No
one is going to let a devastating fire take place just on the
other side of the border without trying to assist.
Do you want to respond to that Mr. Shields, very quickly?
Mr. Shields. That is the case. Senator McCain, I would like
to thank you for your long and continued support of us in
Arizona and nationally. But this is a problem. You have been
there, you have seen the need yourself. It is amazing,
especially, you know, with NAFTA and with some of the
deregulations that you have got more large truck traffic coming
through these border towns than you have ever had, and to the
point where that is becoming a problem with the residents of
the southern parts of these border states. Along with that
comes the needs and the services that we have got to provide
and the taxing, overtaxing, I should say, of the services that
exist in those small communities. I think you have got that
picture very well from your comments.
The Chairman. Well, again, you also bring up another issue,
truck safety we have addressed in this Committee on several
occasions. The growing, rising number of accidents, and so
often our firefighters are called to the scene of one of these
accidents for obvious reasons, and that is a growing problem in
America as we see this dramatic increase in truck traffic, and
according to National Highway Transportation Safety Board an
increase in the number of accidents as well.
So we have a lot of challenges. Chief Whitworth, thank you
for your patience, and thank you for being here. I would like
to say I have visited your city, and it was a great pleasure to
do so in my failed campaign. Please proceed.
Mr. Whitworth. I hope it was not because of our city.
The Chairman. It was because of the firefighters actually.
Mr. Whitworth. I should just leave now. Mr. Chairman, thank
you very much.
The Chairman. I loved visiting and I love your state, and I
am looking forward to visiting, as a matter of fact, come
August. Please proceed.
Mr. Whitworth. As a Vice Presidential candidate, sir?
The Chairman. Oh, no. Actually as a friend of Senator
DeWine's.
STATEMENT OF JAMES H. WHITWORTH, CHIEF, MIAMI TOWNSHIP FIRE &
EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICE, CLERMONT COUNTY
Mr. Whitworth. Very good. Well, first of all, I want to
thank you for having this hearing. It is a great step for us.
Mr. Chairman, Members of the Committee, I am Jim Whitworth,
Chief of the Miami Township Fire Emergency Medical Service, and
if I might correct the record, that is in Clermont County, it
is a much prettier county than Butler County.
The Chairman. Let the record show.
Mr. Whitworth. I have been involved in the fire service for
approximately 27 years, and I am here representing Miami
Township and the Ohio Fire Chiefs Association.
Miami Township is a growing suburban community located 20
miles northeast of Cincinnati. The township encompasses 32
square miles, about 34,000 residents, and is bisected by
Interstate 275. The department operates from 3 stations,
staffed 24 hours per day, 365 days a year. The complement of
uniformed personnel is 38 career, 35 part time, and 8
volunteer. This is what constitutes a combination department as
opposed to one that is all career or one that is all volunteer.
The department has made over 3,100 fire and emergency
medical responses just this past year. Increasingly the fire
service is the go-to agency for newly identified needs in the
area of public safety. My community has been no exception in
this. The last 20 to 30 years have seen rapidly increasing
involvement in fire prevention, fire investigations, emergency
medical care, hazardous materials, natural disaster mitigation,
injury prevention, technical rescue and most recently response
to acts of terrorism.
The fire department is continually asked to be the risk
managers for the community and take responsibility for life,
property, the environment, and the infrastructure. In 1999 FEMA
director James Lee Witt appointed a commission and charged them
to revisit the 1973 report, ``America Burning.'' The commission
found that, among other things, the responsibilities of today's
fire departments extend well beyond the traditional fire
hazard. A reasonably disaster resistant America will not be
achieved until there is greater acknowledgment of the
importance of the fire service and a willingness at all levels
of government to adequately fund the needs and responsibilities
of the fire service.
Crime is considered a national problem, receiving attention
from the Federal government in the form of $11 billion
annually. The fire problem is not just a local one. Hazardous
material releases cross community, county, and state borders.
Vehicles crash and lives are lost on federal highways. Natural
disasters occur without regard to government jurisdictional
boundaries, and terrorists strike federal installations.
Who is risking life and limb to respond to these incidents?
Your local public safety services do. The fire emergency
medical services have many challenges with which to cope. Those
having the most serious effect on our ability to conduct
business are inadequate staffing, government regulations and
national standards, the cost of apparatus, equipment, and the
associated technologies, and inadequate funding.
There are many federal regulations affecting how
departments operate by governing how employees are scheduled,
to how the department must operate at the scene of an
emergency. In 1985 the U.S. Wage and Hour Fair Labor Standards
Act was imposed on fire departments covering how they may
schedule personnel and pay overtime.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration's 2-in/2-
out rule which Captain Shields alluded to earlier requires that
interior firefighting take place until there are 2 personnel on
interior attack hose line and 2 more on a hose line outside
ready to rescue the interior crew. In addition there must be a
fire ground commander and a pump operator.
Miami Township, as well as many other communities in
southwest Ohio, does not have the luxury of staffing apparatus
at this level. This results in either a delayed attack while
waiting for additional personnel to arrive or risk being found
out by OSHA.
While no one argues that this is a safer condition for
those attacking the fire, in the absence of the required
staffing, fire is allowed to grow, which ironically makes the
building less safe for interior operations.
In addition to blood-borne pathogen and infection control
regulations, OSHA's latest foray into the emergency response
field is their proposed ergonomics rule. This, too, will have
an impact on how a department conducts business.
The cost of fire emergency medical apparatus and equipment
has steadily increased over the past 20 to 30 years. A pumper
purchased in the early 1970's that cost $40,000 now costs about
$300,000. That is a lot more pancake dinners.
An ambulance that cost $25,000 now costs $120,000.
Technology has driven many of the changes in apparatus and
equipment and continues to do so at a rapid pace.
Over the last several years the fire department has been
expected to be the risk manager for their community and take
responsibility for life, property, and environmental safety
concerns. The service has demonstrated in most communities that
they are equal to the task. However, many lack the tools to
produce an effective end product or sustain the effort.
If the fire service is to continue in this wide-ranging
role and they are willing and capable of doing so, the Federal
government will need to provide some funding and technical
support needed to address these important tasks. The FIRE Act
is broad based, allowing for funding of fire prevention
initiatives, equipment, stations, training, staffing, and other
life safety programs. This flexibility is essential, as it will
help departments tailor their programs to local needs, deal
with the many federal regulations, and respond to those areas
of critical infrastructure affected by disaster.
I respectfully request that you approve funding for
firefighter safety and public safety programs as specified in
S. 1941. The fire service has been good at making due. It is
now time to fund the firefighter and life safety programs at an
appropriate level. This could be the first step toward a
partnership with states and local governments to improve the
safety of its firefighters and our Nation's citizens. Thank
you, sir.
[The prepared statement of Mr. Whitworth follows:]
Prepared Statement of James H. Whitworth,
Chief, Miami Township Fire & Emergency Medical Service, Clermont County
Biography
James H. Whitworth
I am James Whitworth, Chief of the Miami Township Fire and
Emergency Medical Service. I began my career as a volunteer with the
Golf Manor Fire Department in 1973 while working in industry. At the
beginning of 1982 I accepted a career position with the Blue Ash Fire
Department, remaining with them until 1992, at which time I accepted
the Chief's position with Miami Township.
During the past twenty-seven years I have been trained and am
currently serving as a Paramedic, Fire Fighter, Fire Safety Inspector,
Hazardous Materials Technician, Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation
Instructor, Emergency Medical Technician Instructor, Hazardous
Materials Awareness Instructor, and Response to Terrorism Instructor. I
have held high offices in the Life Safety Services Association of
Clermont County, the Northwest Clermont County Rotary Club, the
Juvenile Fire Setter Education Council of Clermont County, the Incident
Management Assistance Team of Southwest Ohio, Board of Christian
Education for the Trinity United Church of Christ, and elder for the
Covenant Community Church.
I currently serve as president of the Greater Cincinnati Hazardous
Materials Unit, first vice president of the Life Safety Services
Association of Clermont County, secretary of the Rotary Club of
Northwest Clermont County, member of the Clermont County Communications
Advisory Board, member of the Local Emergency Planning Committee, and
member of the Ohio Fire Chief's Association Legislation Committee.
Miami Township, Clermont County, Ohio
Clermont County is the western most Appalachian county in Ohio. As
such, it contains a fair number of residents who are in the low-to-
moderate income bracket. Miami Township is the exception in that it is
rapidly transitioning from an agricultural community into an upper
middle income residential community. Miami Township consists of about
32 square miles and 34,000 residents (1990 census = 33.2 Square miles
and 28,199 residents). The Township is divided 80 percent residential
and 20 percent commercial/retail/light industrial and is bisected by
Interstate 275.
Miami Township Fire and EMS
The Miami Township Fire and Emergency Medical Service operates from
three stations, making over 3,100 emergency responses annually. The
department is staffed with thirty-nine (39) career (1 non-uniformed),
thirty-five (35) part time, and eight (8) volunteer employees. This
constitutes what is referred to as a ``combination department'':
neither career nor volunteer. All career and most part time employees
are cross-trained as both fire fighters and paramedics. Part time
employees are scheduled to work on station based on their availability.
Many are career employees with other suburban departments. Volunteer
positions are entry level and do not require previously obtained
certifications or cross training. The department furnishes their
training and uniforms. The volunteers are scheduled to respond from the
station, but serve without pay.
A fourth classification used to staff emergency responses, but not
utilized by Miami Township, is paid-on-call personnel. They are paid
either by the run or by the hour for responding from home to
emergencies.
Revenues to support Miami Township's Fire and Emergency Medical
Service come primarily from property taxes with a relatively small
supplement derived from billing non-residents for emergency medical
response. In addition, a tiny amount is available annually (about $4
million divided among the entire state), through grants from Ohio's
Emergency Medical Services Board, for training and equipment.
Introduction
Increasingly the fire service is the ``go to'' agency for newly
identified needs in the area of public safety. The last twenty to
thirty years have seen rapidly increasing involvement in fire
prevention, fire investigations, emergency medical care, hazardous
materials, natural disaster mitigation, injury prevention, technical
rescue, and, most recently, response to acts of terrorism. The fire
department is continually asked to be Risk Managers for the community
and take responsibility for life, property and environmental safety
concerns.
In 1999, James Lee Witt, Director of the Federal Emergency
Management Agency, recommissioned America Burning. This was in response
to a finding that the ``indifference with which Americans confront the
subject,'' which was found by the 1973 Commission to be so striking
continues today. According to the Commission, America today has the
highest fire losses in terms of both frequency and total losses of any
modern technological society.
The 1999 Commission reached two major conclusions:
1. The frequency and severity of fires in America do not result
from a lack of knowledge of the causes, means of prevention or
methods of suppression. We have a fire ``problem'' because our
nation has failed to adequately apply and fund known loss
reduction strategies. Had past recommendations of America
Burning and subsequent reports been implemented there would
have been no need for this Commission. Unless those
recommendations and the ones that follow are funded and
implemented, the Commission's efforts will have been an
exercise in futility.
The primary responsibility for fire prevention and suppression
and action with respect to other hazards dealt with by the fire
services properly rests with the states and local governments.
Nevertheless, a substantial role exists for the federal
government in funding and technical support.
2. The responsibilities of today's fire departments extend well
beyond the traditional fire hazard. The fire service is the
primary responder to almost all local hazards, protecting a
community's commercial as well as human assets and firehouses
are the closest connection government has to disaster-
threatened neighborhoods. Firefighters, who too frequently
expose themselves to unnecessary risk, and the communities they
serve, would all benefit if there was the same dedication to
the avoidance of loss from fires and other hazards that exists
in the conduct of fire suppression and rescue operations.
A reasonably disaster-resistant America will not be achieved
until there is greater acknowledgment of the importance of the
fire service and a willingness at all levels of government to
adequately fund the needs and responsibilities of the fire
service. The lack of public understanding about the fire hazard
is reflected in the continued rate of loss of life and
property. The efforts of local fire departments to educate
children and others must intensify. Without the integrated
efforts of all segments of the community, including city and
county managers, mayors, architects, engineers, researchers,
academics, materials producers and the insurance industry, as
well as the fire service, there is little reason to expect that
a proper appreciation of the critical role played by the fire
service will materialize, in which case the necessary funding
will continue to be lacking.
Losses from fire at the high rate experienced in America are
avoidable and should be as unacceptable as deaths and losses
caused by drunk driving or deaths of children accidentally
killed playing with guns.
The Congress should increase its involvement in fire loss
prevention in America, and exercise more fully its oversight
responsibilities under the 1974 Act. The Congress should also
appropriate for the fire problem appropriate resources
commensurate with those it provides to community policing or
highway safety.
Crime is considered a national problem receiving attention from the
federal government in the form of $11 billion, while the fire problem
is considered a local and state issue receiving federal funds to
support the U.S. Fire Administration at $32 million. The problem is not
just a local one: hazardous material releases cross community, county
and state borders, vehicles crash and lives are lost on federal
highways, natural disasters occur without regard to government
jurisdictional boundaries, and terrorists strike federal installations.
Who responds to these crises? The local public safety services do.
The FIRE Act is among the most important legislative initiatives
offered in recent years affecting the fire service. When passed and
appropriately funded the FIRE Act will enhance a department's ability
to provide an all hazards approach, and not be limited to a partial
solution to make America a safer place from fires, accidents and
natural disasters.
The following is an attempt to provide insight into local needs
that have an impact on the national issues affecting public safety.
The Problem Defined
Staffing
As stated previously the fire service has become the ``go to''
agency for newly identified needs in the area of public safety. The
last twenty to thirty years have seen rapidly increasing involvement in
fire prevention, fire investigations, emergency medical care, hazardous
materials, natural disaster mitigation, injury prevention, technical
rescue, and, most recently, response to acts of terrorism.
Accompanying each emergency response discipline is the need for
education and continual retraining to maintain skill levels. In a small
combination department like Miami Township's the already limited
resources are stretched even thinner. A partial solution is the
formation of regional response units like the Federal Emergency
Management Agency's Urban Search and Rescue Team. Miami Township is
then obligated to supply far less personnel and resources than it would
take to have full responsibility for a unit of this type. However, with
the number of regional ``teams'' needed to respond to hazardous
materials incidents, technical rescue incidents, fire investigations,
and etc. there is still significant pressure placed on a department's
resources.
As mentioned earlier, Clermont County is an Appalachian county.
Outside of the three or four western most communities Clermont County
consists primarily of agricultural land and residents in the low-to-
moderate income bracket. The availability of personnel with the
willingness to volunteer to place their lives in danger responding to
other people's emergencies, the ability to learn and achieve the
necessary certifications, and the time to participate as a volunteer is
limited.
In most communities the true volunteer fire fighter or emergency
medical technician no longer exists. The vast majority receives some
form of compensation--pay-per-call or an hourly wage--to respond to
emergencies from home.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
MTF & EMS Employees 1985 1999
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Full Time 18 39
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Part Time 1 35
(on station)
------------------------------------------------------------------------
Volunteer 129 8
------------------------------------------------------------------------
As a rule it is more difficult to find volunteers today that have
the time to do more than respond to emergencies. Consequently
departments struggle with adequate staffing for emergencies as well as
fire and injury prevention, hazardous materials, and technical rescue
activities. The Insurance Services Office uses 7 volunteers to equal to
1 career employee. Miami Township's experience is that it takes 3-4
part time employees to equal one career employee. This has resulted in
many departments transitioning to part time employees on station, and
eventually moving to full time personnel.
The flow chart on the next page illustrates three distinct
transition paths identified in the Southwest Ohio area by Chief Stephen
Ashbrock of the Indian Hill-Madeira Joint Fire District, while working
on his Master's in Public Administration.
Of those few departments who have been able to maintain a
significant number of volunteer (paid-on-call) members the common
statement heard is that things are ``not like they used to be . . .''
Today, departments must compete to hire and retain ``volunteers.'' The
competition is among family, jobs, school, civic organizations, and
neighboring departments, to name some. The increasingly technical
nature of the fire fighter's job, reflected in increased state
requirements for certification for firefighting, and especially EMS,
has been included in discussions about the decreased availability of
volunteers. In addition, the changing demographics of a community,
aging of the residents without an influx of younger citizens willing
and able to serve, contributes to the decrease in available volunteers.
According to Chief Ashbrock's research the following chart
indicates a significant increase in Career and Part Time fire fighters
while the numbers of Paid-on-Call and Volunteer fire fighters
diminished.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
1985 1990 1996 % Change
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Career 1065 1060 1253 118
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Part Time 269 464 715 266
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
POC/Vol 953 764 580 -40
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Totals 2287 2288 2548 111
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The above numbers were derived by adding the claimed number of fire
fighters on the rosters of the agencies surveyed. The total number of
fire fighters, however, is suspect due to career and part time fire
fighters having memberships in as many as four departments (One was
found on the roster of five departments!). This phenomenon has become
increasingly prevalent since about 1985 and, derived from surveys,
likely involves about 15%-25% of the fire fighters locally. With the
above issues in mind, Chief Ashbrock's research indicates that there
may be about 2,100 fire fighters filling the 2,548 positions. Please
note that the 2,100 figure is less than the 1985 estimate of 2,287 fire
fighters.
As a result the Southwest Ohio area is experiencing a wage war
among departments hiring part time fire fighters and emergency medical
technicians. Several of the departments are now paying an hourly wage
the same as that earned by their career personnel. Some offer limited
health benefits. Also, to be competitive in the employment arena,
residency requirements have been relaxed or eliminated. This impacts
the ability of a department to recall its members for the ``big one''
and expect them to respond in a timely manner.
Regulations Affecting Departments
Affecting how departments operate is the myriad of federal and
state regulations governing everything from how employees are scheduled
to how the department must operate at the scene of an emergency.
In Ohio, Townships may not work part time employees more than 1,500
hours unless they offer them the same health insurance program offered
their full time personnel. (Municipalities are not constrained by this
or a similar law.) A principal reason to hire part time personnel is to
avoid the cost of fringe benefits. Since fire departments have year
round, 24 hours per day needs the 1,500 hours is a limiting factor that
causes the hiring of more fire fighters to fill the schedule. The costs
associated with the hiring process, outfitting, scheduling and training
increase in the face of this requirement.
In 1985 the U.S. Wage and Hour Fair Labor Standards Act was imposed
on fire departments, especially those working their personnel on a 24
hours on/48 hours off schedule. Several amendments have refined the
regulations, but one still remains that has a serious impact on
countywide systems: career personnel may not volunteer during their off
duty time for the same department, for that department's volunteer
component. Although not a significant issue in Southwest Ohio this
regulation has a serious impact on a department's ability to provide
adequately staffed services in Maryland and Virginia, to name two areas
of which I am aware. This situation creates staffing issues as well as
having cost implications.
The Occupational Safety and Health Administration's ``2-in/2-out''
rule requires that no interior fire fighting take place until there are
two personnel on an interior attack hose line and two more on a hose
line outside ready to rescue the interior crew, if needed. In addition,
there must be a fire ground commander and a pump operator. Most area
departments, including Miami Township, staff their first-out apparatus
with two or three personnel. That means that fire fighting is delayed
until arrival of personnel from another station, or another community
under a mutual assistance agreement, or the department invests in
increased staffing. While no one argues that this is a safer condition
for those attacking the fire, in the absence of recommended staffing
the fire is allowed to grow while waiting for additional troops, which,
ironically, makes the building less safe for interior operations. This
is a staffing, funding, and service level issue.
On Saturday, July 15, 2000, Miami Township Fire and EMS responded
to a fire in the local VFW hall. It began in the eave near the incoming
power line due to an electrical short circuit. All occupants were out
of the building on our arrival within 4 minutes of the alarm. Flames
were showing at the eave and smoke exiting the ridge vent on the roof.
Because the first responding pumper had 3 persons on board and a
supervisor there were not enough personnel to affect an interior
attack. The second pumper arrived about 3 minutes later and the first
attack hose was advanced into the building after the rapid intervention
(rescue) team was ready outside. While waiting for the rapid
intervention team to arrive and assemble the fire was growing rapidly.
When the attack team entered the building they had difficulty getting
at the seat of the fire due to having to breach two ceilings. The fire
continued to grow and by now had extended almost the entire length of
the building's common attic. Within 15 minutes the roof collapsed: five
minutes after evacuating all interior attack crews.
The after-action-analysis suggests that the delay in being able to
attack the fire contributed to its spread and the ensuing collapse.
Fire grows exponentially with each passing minute. This was both an
OSHA regulation issue and a staffing issue.
In addition, to infection control regulations, OSHA's latest foray
into the emergency response field is their proposed ergonomics rule.
This, too, will have an impact on how a department conducts business.
The small volunteer departments that have no administrative staff will
``suffer'' the most under the reporting, tracking and training
requirements in the proposed ergonomics rule. It will cause additional
responsibilities for the already stretched one-person office in Miami
Township.
There are many other federal regulations having an impact on a fire
department's ability to provide services. These ``unfunded mandates''
create administrative and financial burdens.
The National Fire Protection Association has promulgated voluntary
standards guiding fire departments in how they operate in the multiple
disciplines to which they are committed. The NFPA has supported the
establishment of minimum staffing per fire apparatus in recognition of
studies citing improvement in extinguishing fires. A study mentioned in
the International City and County Managers Association publication
Managing Fire Services, cites that ``five-person fire suppression
companies were judged to be 100 percent effective in their task
performance, four-person companies 65 percent effective, and three-
person companies 38 percent effective.'' Miami Township affords to have
one three-person company and two two-person companies. (The national
average was derived from a 1994 study done by the Phoenix Fire
Department and information from the International Association of Fire
Chiefs.)
Although the standards are voluntary the court system has
demonstrated they recognize them as ``industry best practices'' and
holds a department accountable for non-compliance. There is little
disagreement that standards are needed to help provide a consistent,
effective and efficient service to the community and, many times, to
protect us from ourselves. However, as with OSHA regulations, there are
serious costs to comply.
Cost of Equipment and Technology
The cost of fire and emergency medical apparatus and equipment has
steadily increased over the past 20-30 years. A pumper purchased in the
early 1970's that cost $40,000 now costs about $300,000. An ambulance
purchased for $25,000 now costs $120,000. A defibrillator in the late
1970's that cost $9,500 now sells for $16,000. Technology has driven
many of the changes in apparatus and equipment and continues to do so
at a rapid pace.
Miami Township Fire and EMS is faced with replacing its forty-year-
old radio system with an 800-megahertz trunked radio system. Touted to
be state-of-the-art it will cost the community about $250,000-$300,000
(assuming the system performs as advertised). This begs the question,
will Miami Township receive a benefit equivalent to the cost? I believe
not. However, with the Federal Communications Commission shrinking the
bandwidth and reassigning the frequencies on which public safety
operates there is little choice but to ``bite the bullet'' and make the
change.
Funding
Miami Township Fire and EMS is almost exclusively funded through
property taxes. However, in Ohio, property tax millage is rolled back
annually to keep the dollar amount fixed for the property owner. This
method does not keep pace with inflation. The six permanent tax levies
passed in the 70's and 80's, to support Miami Township Fire and EMS,
have rolled back to about 55 percent of their original millage. Unless
the community is on a reasonably fast growth track this requires going
back to the public every few years for increases in property taxes. The
irony here is that the greater the growth the greater the impact on
public safety services.
The department receives a small amount of additional revenues
through billing non-residents for emergency medical responses ($65,000
in 1999). Unfortunately, a large portion of this amount is used to
offset increased costs due to local hospitals discontinuing to restock
the supplies used on patients delivered to their facility. The Health
Care Financing Administration anti-kickback rule has been applied here.
Representative Robert Ney has introduced HR 557 to provide a ``safe
harbor'' for those hospitals and EMS units who participate in a
restocking program. In addition, a tiny amount ($15,500 for 2000-2001)
is received by annually qualifying for training and equipment grants
through the Ohio EMS Board ($4 million for the entire state).
Ohio offers three other grant programs for its fire services
through the Public Utilities Commission Office, Fire Marshal's office
and the Department of Natural Resources. Two of the programs are for
communities with populations less than 10,000, and, therefore, do not
apply to Miami Township. The PUCO grant targets hazardous materials
training. However, if Miami Township submits an application they will
be competing against the Clermont County Local Emergency Planning
Committee. The Township does get benefit of the training grant through
the LEPC, so it was decided not to seek the PUCO money.
Response Times
An important benchmark for determining level of service to the
community is response times. The variables having the most impact on
response times are station location and career vs. volunteer/paid-on-
call personnel. In Miami Township's case the average response time is a
product of station location. There are areas of the community that take
up to 10 minutes to reach. (The national average was derived from a
1994 study done by the Phoenix Fire Department and information from the
International Association of Fire Chiefs.) A one-year retrospective
review of 13,238 incidents in Clermont County revealed an average
response time of 7 minutes 59 seconds. Some of the volunteer/paid-on-
call departments in Clermont County have occasional response times as
long as 20 minutes.
The American Heart Association issues the only national standard
that exists for response times. The AHA recommends that basic life
support be delivered in less than four minutes and advanced life
support in less than eight minutes.
The Insurance Services Office grades a fire department on its
response to structure fires only, but does not issue a standard for
performance. Nor does ISO grade any other services the department may
offer.
Summary
Over the last several years the fire department has been expected
to be the Risk Manager for their community and take responsibility for
life, property and environmental safety concerns. The service has
demonstrated in most communities that they are equal to the task.
However, many lack the tools to produce an effective end product or
sustain the effort. If the Fire Service is to continue in this wide-
ranging role, and they are willing and capable of doing so, the federal
government will need to provide some of the funding and technical
support needed to address these important tasks. This support should be
appropriate and ``commensurate with those it provides to community
policing or highway safety,'' as stated by the Commission in America
Burning, 1999. The $32 million provided through the U.S. Fire
Administration pales in comparison to the $11 billion funding for
criminal justice programs. Ostensibly, the federal funding for criminal
justice programs receives support because crime is a national problem.
Local departments make responses to crashes and fires on federal
highways and at federal installations. Losses due to fires affect the
insurance premiums of all citizens across the country. The large losses
attributed to fires, in terms of life and property, is not only a
national problem, it is a national travesty. Our country should be
embarrassed to be among the worst of the industrialized nations,
especially in light of its knowledge of fire prevention, its
technological capabilities, and wealth.
In addition, the FIRE Act is broad based allowing 90 percent of the
proposed funding to be used for equipment, stations, staffing and other
life safety programs. This flexibility is essential; as it will help
local departments deal with the many federal regulations that require
the expenditure of limited funds to comply with the mandates.
The FIRE Act is not a magic bullet. It will take commitment by
local departments to deliver the programs, and expend the energy to
make the needed improvements in service delivery. This is a cooperative
venture, but hinges on the appropriate level of support from the
federal government.
I ask that you approve funding for fire prevention and public
safety programs at $1 billion per year for five years. The fire service
has been expert at getting by with whatever it was given. It is now
time to fund life safety programs at an appropriate level. You can save
countless lives, reduce suffering, and reduce property loss by
supporting the FIRE Act. Send a clear message that it is no longer
acceptable to ignore public welfare when it comes to fire and life
safety issues. I urge you to support the FIRE Act and do what it takes
to make it happen.
Appendix
Northeast Suburban Life
By Dave Phillips, Editor and Jason Norman, Reporter
Published: July 19, 2000
Attracting those to carry a person down a ladder from burning
buildings, man the hoses and hydrants or use the jaws of life to
extract a critically-injured driver from a mangled wreck is getting
more and more difficult.
Some fire departments are understaffed--mostly in the part-time,
supplemental area.
Local fire chiefs agree that less than a full contingent creates
dangers to the residents they are paid to protect, and the firefighters
themselves.
Blue Ash Fire Department Chief James Fehr said the city's
department is presently understaffed.
``We're in the process of hiring three full-time people,'' Fehr
said. He also said they're trying to hire more part time people. He
said it's become harder to find part-time people.
He said most part-time firefighters work for three or four
departments, hoping to latch on full time with one of them. He said one
major challenge is keeping part-time workers under the maximum hours
they can work. He also said, ``We're using full-time people on
overtime.''
One of the dangers of having an understaffed department, Fehr said,
is fatigue. ``You create a burnout situation,'' Fehr said.
Montgomery Fire Chief Paul Wright faces similar problems finding
part-time staffers.
``Some of our part-timers work for three or four departments. It
has become almost a `mercenary' pool, so a lot of staffers are not as
loyal to one department.'' Getting someone to fill-in for those who
call-in when not coming in to fill a shift creates major problems,
Wright said.
``A lot has to do with money. A lot of people can go to work in
different occupations and make as much money (as we have to offer),''
Wright said. Montgomery starts its part-timers at $9.74 per hour and
then in five incremental raise steps to $11.35.
Sycamore Township Fire Department Chief B.J. Jetter said his
department is presently operating at full-staff. Jetter said his
department faces the same strain of part-time staffing. ``The part-time
program is always an issue,'' Jetter said. ``It's a county-wide
issue.''
Jetter said he won't allow his department to become understaffed.
He said he feels the residents of Sycamore Township are ``pretty well
taken care of'' in terms of fire safety.
Wright says he has a full contingent of nine full-time
firefighters/paramedics and his roster of 30 part-timers is also full.
``That gives us five personnel to cover every shift 24 hours per
day, seven days a week,'' Wright said.
The Montgomery department also gives its applicants a stiff series
of three tests--written, physical and skills.
Otto Huber, assistant fire chief and chief of operations, said the
Loveland-Symmes Fire Department is fully staffed with 55-50 full-time
firefighters/paramedics or firefighters/EMTs and five office staff.
One of the reasons LSFD has a full roster is that Huber, a few
years ago, brought together a few chief from area departments, ``to
discuss like problems--especially staffing--and the Fire Chiefs
Consortium was devised,'' he said.
Besides sharing information with one another concerning an
employee's work history, work ethic, etc., the 10 departments that make
up the organization save money sharing written and physical ability
testing, background checks and medical examinations, said Huber.
Member departments are Anderson, Colerain, Delhi, Green and
Sycamore townships in Hamilton County, Mason and West Chester and Union
and Miami townships in Clermont County, besides Loveland-Symmes.
``When we went to 100 percent full-time, we corrected a lot of
problems,'' Huber said. ``Mercenaries (a term used by most departments
for part-timers) don't enter into our picture anymore.''
He said that there was an economy to using a resource pool and LSFD
still uses it to fill any openings.
Huber went on to explain that all 10 departments' staff is free to
chose where they wish to work and there is some transferring.
LSFD pays firefighter/EMTs $21,000 to start, topping out at
$29,000. Firefighters/paramedics start at $27,500, with the top salary
at $38,500.
Loveland-Symmes is one of only six fire departments in Ohio to
achieve a Class 2 rating from the Commercial Risk Services of the
Insurance Services Office and that ranking is rough to maintain--
especially as far as full-staffed status is concerned. (There are only
17 Class 1 departments nationwide, none in the Buckeye State.)
This highly trained, nationally accredited department employs a
staff of 55 and operates out of four stations located in strategic
areas of Symmes Township and Loveland to serve 30,000 residents within
13.8 square miles.
Wright also said the reason for a shrinking pool of part-timers is
that some departments are going to a 100 percent full-time department.
``Forest Park recently did away with its part-timers altogether and
now has a department with all full-time staffers,'' he said.
``Where we used to advertise for supplemental staff, we would get
20 or 30 applications,'' Wright said. ``Now we get two or three. I
guess every organization that is hiring has the same problem of a
shrinking pool of potential employees. It is just our society.''
The Chairman. Thank you, Chief Whitworth, thank you for
being here. The FIRE Act would direct FEMA to award the grants
on a competitive basis. However, the bill does not provide any
specific criteria. Chief Fincher, do you believe the bill
should be changed to ensure the funding would be available to
the neediest departments?
Mr. Fincher. I am sure that with input from the fire chiefs
and the firefighters associations working with FEMA in
developing a grant program and developing a needs assessment of
the entire fire service of the United States, I trust that we
could develop a program like that.
The Chairman. Are you worried if we put in a sort of a
means test that states would then reduce their funding with the
philosophy that the Federal government would make it up? Do you
see my problem here? And I think that is why it is not in the
bill as written.
Mr. Fincher. I do not know if I understand your question
exactly.
The Chairman. So we say, we write in the bill that we say
it is a basis of need, that in some part of Nogales, Arizona we
know the state has funded the least, so therefore the Federal
grant money would go to it. Sometimes the natural reaction to
legislation that we have seen with other programs is that they
then deliberately underfund, knowing that the Federal
government will intercede. I will ask all of the witnesses that
question.
Mr. Fincher. Well, I would think it should work as the same
thing as asset forfeiture with the police department, that no
way can they reduce the budget of the police department because
of how much money they get through asset forfeiture, and I
think the direct grant program to the fire department is the
way to make it work. FEMA should work directly with the fire
department, develop a definition of what a fire department
really is and develop a needs assessment which may take a year,
develop that in association with these same groups here.
The Chairman. Mr. Monihan.
Mr. Monihan. I agree there has to be some kind of safety
net, that seems to be the best. I would point out that there
are some states that cannot give less. There are--I know a
couple volunteer departments where after a fire they draw
straws to see who is going to buy the gas to put in the truck
for the next fire. Now, you cannot get much further down than
that.
The Chairman. Mr. Shields.
Mr. Shields. Mr. Chairman, there may be some sort of a
mechanism that we can put in place that would cause successful
recipients in those states if their funding were reduced
afterwards that they would lose a commensurate share of the
grant also, which is similar to what is done, I think, in
matching fund programs for health care and that sort of thing.
The Chairman. Chief Whitworth.
Mr. Whitworth. Mr. Chairman, Ohio has about five grant
programs right now, and most of them are targeted toward the
low to moderate income communities, most of them targeted
toward communities that have 10,000 people or less. That leaves
the larger communities to fend for themselves. I also know that
some of the smaller communities have difficulty applying for
these grants because of little or no administrative staff to
accomplish that. We have in our county worked with those low to
moderate income communities to try to even that base, provide
them the needed staff support. I know my community has
contributed to that, and we will probably continue along those
same lines, but it is a struggle, and as the gentleman over
here said, I am not sure Ohio can fund their fire EMS at a much
less rate than what they do now.
The Chairman. Mr. Monihan.
Mr. Monihan. Excuse me, if I may, the National Volunteer
Fire Council has been advocating that as part of any sort of a
grant program there be grant writing assistance provided by
FEMA, or by whoever as part of the program because many of the
most needy departments just do not have anybody to do the grant
writing, and first of all do not have the talent, second of all
do not have the time.
The Chairman. Sometimes they do not even have the
information these grants are available.
Mr. Monihan. That is the other problem. We have a concern
about a study. Now, I know some sort of a study probably has to
be done, but a study would be very difficult because it would
have to really cover all departments, not a statistic, as they
say, a statistically significant sample because there is such a
wide variation across the country.
The Chairman. Well, I thank you. I thank you for all you
do. I thank you for taking time from your busy schedules to be
here today. Senator Kerry has been heavily involved in these
issues for a long time, and we have discussed this issue and we
intend to work to try to iron out any differences on both
sides. This Committee works generally, in fact uniformly on a
bipartisan basis, and we will look forward to working with you
as we develop this legislation. Senator Kerry.
STATEMENT OF HON. JOHN F. KERRY,
U.S. SENATOR FROM MASSACHUSETTS
Senator Kerry. [Presiding.] Well, Mr. Chairman, thank you
very much. First of all, thank you for having this hearing,
which we appreciate enormously, and thank you for your
testimony, all of you. I will be very, very brief. I do not
think we need to belabor this, but let me say first of all, I
have been astounded to learn the degree to which on a national
level there is this gap in the available resources to
firefighters all across the nation. It is really quite
remarkable.
In fact, I was struck that more than two million fires are
reported in the United States every year, 4,000 deaths, 24,000
civilian injuries, 8 billion in direct property losses, and 50
billion in costs to taxpayers. Obviously more than 80 percent
of the yearly fire deaths and injuries occur in residential
fires, and there is just an enormous reluctance for local
communities to either live up to the responsibilities or in
some cases it is impossible for them to live up to their
responsibilities. Clearly we have a federal priority in making
sure that people are safe, that our communities are safe, and
needless to say, most importantly, that those who put their
lives on the line, they are not doing so without state-of-the-
art technology, state-of-the-art ability.
We in Massachusetts regrettably learned this lesson all too
starkly last year in Worcester where we lost six of our brave,
courageous firefighters in a terrible situation where I think
the courage of firefighters was underscored all across the
nation. These firefighters went in to pull homeless people out
of a building. In a more callous world, I suppose, some people
might have sort of had a reservation and done a balancing of
the equities, but there was none of that. People were in there,
they went in. No questions asked.
But technologically there were things we might have known,
things we might have done in terms of tracking. There were
things we might have done in terms of rescue and so forth that
we are aware of, but those technologies were not available.
Everybody expects that kind of uncommon bravery, frankly.
It is almost so automatic that people expect it, and it is
given, and often given by people who are volunteers, not even
full time. So this legislation is very personal to me and to a
lot of us in Massachusetts, as it is across the country because
we lose firefighters in communities all across the country
every year.
I would like to underscore, therefore, the need to try to
provide this $5 billion over a 5-year period, which I think is
not asking too much. I am proud to be a sponsor of the
legislation, and I am eager to see us act on it.
Now, I was one of the principal people who--in fact, I led
the fight on the floor of the U.S. Senate--to put 100,000
police officers on the streets of America. We ran into
resistance from people who said, wait a minute, this is a local
responsibility. The federal government should not be providing
direct money that pays the salary or hires the police officer.
So we had to get over that resistance. But since that
program passed in 1993, there has been an enormous reduction in
crime at the national level. Americans are safer, our
communities are safer, and we have really been able to help
leverage behavior at the local level.
I have always viewed the FIRE Act in the same way, but let
me ask you, gentlemen, each of you, because you come from
different local communities and different parts of the country.
Speak for a moment, if you will, to that resistance that still
exists among some people here, which is why we have not been
able to move this yet in prior efforts, as to what the
compelling rationale is for why the Federal government ought to
step in to what has traditionally been viewed as a local
responsibility, and if each of you might say a word about that.
It goes to the question Chairman McCain asked when he said
what happens if we supply this money, will not the states look
and say, oh, well, OK, now that the Feds are supplying this we
do not have to put so much in? We will put it somewhere else,
how do you prevent that psychology and is this a commitment
forever? How do you view this? Would each of you maybe address
that, Chief Fincher, do you want to begin?
Mr. Fincher. I would be more than happy to, sir. I do not
think we are going to have the same problems that they
exhibited with the police department that type of resistance,
because that program started without the police up here asking
for the program, quite candidly. We are here asking for it, and
we know what our needs are. We have got to develop a needs
assessment, but we have got these terrorism programs and the
mandates that come with it. The Department of Defense gave
training to 120 of the largest cities in the United States plus
the equipment to deal with it, but at the same time they gave
us no money to replace or maintain that equipment. They gave us
no money to buy vehicles that can carry the equipment, they
gave us no money for staff to do those operations.
We are also charged with fixed nuclear facility response,
and in my city, a city that borders on the State of South
Carolina and North Carolina, there is a fixed nuclear facility
in South Carolina. When emergencies happen, it causes our
response in a city of a half a million that is not even in the
same state, so we have those border problems.
The OSHA 2-in and 2-out, some of these cities like Miami
Township cannot physically afford to put 4 people on every
piece of apparatus. Some cities have the luxury to be able to
do that, and so I do not think we are going to have those same
types of problems, but there is----
Senator Kerry. And, of course, since this is a grant
program----
Mr. Fincher. Absolutely.
Senator Kerry. It would be based on need, correct?
Mr. Fincher. Absolutely. It should be based on need, some
of the needs like Miami Township may be people, mine may be
equipment. It may not be staffing. It has got to be training,
personnel, and equipment, protective clothing, self-contained
breathing apparatus with radio interface and the tracking of
firefighters like you alluded to in Massachusetts. That is
critical.
That transition of technology from defense down to the
local fire department has got to take place, but right now we
cannot afford to buy thermal imaging cameras at $15,000 to
$20,000 apiece. If you only get one or two with a city like
Charlotte, North Carolina, which has 48 companies, I cannot get
that through my budget, and neither will the state afford to do
that. Education is a top priority right now.
Senator Kerry. A very helpful answer. Mr. Monihan.
Mr. Monihan. To address one of our major problems also, we
need this money available to assist where retention and
recruitment of volunteers because this is another major
problem, again due to time, and the time factor is worsened
every time we have to have more training, additional fund-
raising all eats up time, and so we are anxious to see that.
Also, I quite frankly, Mr. Kerry, I do not know what the
psychology is here in Washington to be so reluctant to support
the fire service. I have been on the stump since 1979 with the
volunteer fire assistance program, and I must say that Congress
has been very, very supportive of us because the volunteer fire
assistance program was totally zeroed out at one point. It has
never been fully funded, as Congressman Weldon said, but it was
totally zeroed out for about 4 years in a row by the
administration, both sides of the aisle, and the Congress has
come to our rescue.
I do not honestly know. I do know that there has to be some
sort of a fence built around the grants that prevent state and
localities from reducing their participation.
Senator Kerry. In other words, the existing funding should
be held harmless somehow.
Mr. Monihan. If they reduce their contribution, then the
Federal grant goes away, and I think that has to play hard
ball.
Senator Kerry. Yes.
Mr. Monihan. There are State and local interests and
priorities, and one of the questions that Senator McCain
mentioned in the beginning was with all the surpluses in the
states and so forth right now----
Senator Kerry. Why can't they do it?
Mr. Monihan. What success are we having. Well,
unfortunately it varies across the country, but there has
actually been very little success for getting funding for the
fire service because there are other local priorities. There
are health care priorities, there are educational priorities
and tax reductions, because that is politically, as you well
know, very vital this time of year, or this year, so we have
not had a lot of success across the country, and I think that
is probably true throughout all facets of the fire service, not
just the volunteer.
Senator Kerry. Does anybody else want to add to that? You
do not have to, but if you want to----
Mr. Shields. Senator Kerry, thank you for the opportunity.
As I said to Mr. McCain, or Senator McCain--I am not sure that
you heard my comments, but there is a different situation in
every State.
Obviously, you know that well, in Arizona in this time of
booming economies and budget surplus is that we have been
struggling with a formula, a court-mandated formula for
equalization of school funding in addition to the tax cuts
movement that the fire chief has talked about, and although
there is a shared revenue formula from the State back to the
local governments to support local services and fire
departments are part of that, there is always a move in the
State legislature in Arizona to reduce that percentage, and so
we are always in a position of fighting for what we have.
It is not a question of can we improve the fire service in
Nogales or Flagstaff or Bisbee. It is a question of, can we
maintain what we have, even in a good economy, so I believe and
the IAFF believes that there is a role for the Federal
government.
We do not believe that it should be the major or even a
major funding source for local fire services, but in these
areas of deficiency the training we talk about, in some cases
staffing, and definitely the equipment and equipment
maintenance, health and safety programs, that the Federal
government could take the lead that it has in law enforcement
and education and in transportation and put that same concern
into the fire service and help us with these situations that
protect lives.
Mr. Whitworth. Mr. Kerry, thank you for the opportunity to
comment. Miami Township is funded at the local level, strictly
through property taxes, and 85 percent of the property tax bill
that each resident pays goes to support the school system. The
remaining 15 percent is then divided among county services and
the local services.
As far as Ohio is concerned, I did mention earlier that
they offer several grant programs. My best guesstimate is that
that is to the tune of $8 million or less annually. That
primarily is geared to training through the public utilities
commission, the Ohio Department of Natural Resources offers a
rural fire grant, as well as the fire marshal's office.
The EMS board offers some reimbursement for training and
equipment. We competed this year. It is a competitive grant
program. We competed this year, and managed to get the whopping
sum of $15,000, so I will try to use that wisely, and I will
spend it all in one place.
We are also finding that Ohio is reducing the fire
marshal's budget each year. There is pressure to reduce 2
percent and 5 percent, so consequently they are trying to keep
up the same programs and, very frankly, the funding that they
do offer to some of the small rural departments is in jeopardy
because of that.
We also have to comply with Federal mandates, OSHA, FCC,
wage and hour, Fair Labor Standards Act. We have Federal
highways running through our community, and all of those have
an impact.
What we would ask for is for this to be a partnership, not,
as Mr. Shields says, simply one-sided funding, that this
partnership that the government would be entering into with
state and local governments to help support and provide those
services for our nation's firefighters, improve their safety.
Senator Kerry. Just a quick question. What would be the
first thing that you would want to apply for?
Mr. Fincher. In Charlotte, North Carolina?
Senator Kerry. Yes, the first thing you would want from a
grant.
Mr. Fincher. I would like to develop our terrorist program
to where I can provide adequate response to any types of acts
of terrorism, equipment maintenance, wellness fitness programs,
health and safety programs.
Senator Kerry. Well, the first thing. You have got a list,
obviously, but I want to know the first thing.
Mr. Monihan. Unfortunately I did not bring a list.
Senator Kerry. What is the first thing you would think of?
Mr. Whitworth. Probably training, generalized training.
Senator Kerry. Mr. Shields.
Mr. Shields. For the cities that I spoke of, I would say
staffing.
Senator Kerry. Staffing levels.
Mr. Shields. The smaller cities I spoke of.
Mr. Monihan. Training.
Senator Kerry. What happens when you talk to your local
officials about this, both state and local? Do they simply say
to you, we just do not have the ability, we cannot? What comes
back to you?
Mr. Fincher. Right now, just keeping up with growth. With
the economy like it is and the cities expanding through
annexation, just keeping up with the growth is expanding my
budget 10 percent a year.
Senator Kerry. Well, I understand that, but--oh, you mean
just in terms of additional departments?
Mr. Fincher. Absolutely.
Senator Kerry. Additional personnel.
Mr. Fincher. Hiring additional personnel, training them and
equipping them, is increasing my budget already beyond what the
city's growth and revenue is.
Senator Kerry. Well, there is obviously no more important
task than providing fire protection to people in the community.
If the community is growing, does the community not have a
responsibility--and this is a question we get asked here--to
assess accordingly?
Mr. Fincher. Yes, it does.
Senator Kerry. I mean, is the community and all the local
politicians simply trying to avoid local responsibility and
shove it up to the federal government and say, hey, you guys
give us the money, we are not asking for the taxes?
Mr. Fincher. I do not know if I am the adequate person to
respond to that type of comment, sir, but I think there is a
move on at every local level to keep taxes on property at a
certain level. Education is high on every local list.
Senator Kerry. We like to give tax cuts, too.
Mr. Fincher. Yes.
Senator Kerry. So I mean, there is a little of that going
on, maybe. What do you think, Mr. Shields?
Mr. Shields. Senator Kerry, I deal with a lot of elected
officials in a lot of cities, and I think one of the biggest
problems that we face as advocates for the fire service is that
the citizens themselves, and the elected officials, do not
sense a problem for us of the magnitude that we would, for
instance, with law enforcement. When gangs were on the rise,
and that sort of thing----
Senator Kerry. They feel it every day.
Mr. Shields. Oh, yes. The problem of the day, and the
squeaky wheel, and to a degree that is still true.
Education in Arizona, we rank dead last in the country in
per capita spending for education, so it is easy for them to
focus on and natural for them to focus on, I think, the sort of
problems of the day.
They tend to look at firefighters and emergency medical
responses as a problem that we have solved and taken care of,
because it is not that squeaky wheel and has not been out there
on the forefront, but that does not take into account that
through all these means and mechanisms that you have heard
about is that we have just patched together systems in
different ways in different communities, whether it is
volunteer or paid, to make do. That is the nature and the sort
of history of the fire service.
Senator Kerry. Sure.
Mr. Shields. We are here today to highlight the fact that
it is time to sort of come into the next millennium in our
thinking on supporting our people, safety so that we can better
protect the people that we serve.
Senator Kerry. Well, you are doing a good job of it, and I
appreciate all of you taking the time to be here and share that
with us.
As I said earlier, I am convinced we in the federal
government do have a role. We have, indeed, made these
mandates. We have national priorities that are reflected in
what happens in cities and towns. Clearly for the training, for
the certain kinds of technology, for other kinds of things, we
ought to be able to be helpful. I think our help can leverage
greater local and state participation, and I think that ought
to be one of the roles here. So we need to structure this grant
program in a way that does that.
I am asked by the Chairman if I would announce that the
record will stay open for 2 weeks for potential additional
statements and/or questions by other members who are not able
to be here today. I want to thank each of you.
Is there anything you have not had a chance to say, or some
point that you would like to make that you think is important
before we close the hearing?
Mr. Monihan. I would like to add to something Mr. Shields
just said. You know, in some respects we are our own worst
enemy. When the alarm comes in we go fight the fire. We are
playing in an environment that does not work that way, and we
are not in a position to be able to play the game, and
unfortunately it is a big issue.
For example, you lost six firefighters. It is a big issue
when that happens, but then it is very quickly forgotten, and
most of the people who die die in ones and twos. It is in the
newspaper in the morning, somebody says, isn't that a shame
that baby burned to death, and they keep right on going.
So in my own state we have the luxury of having tremendous
support from the state and also from the city government. I
have always said, if every fire department in the country had
the support that we have in Lewes, there would not be any
problem, but that is not true across the country, and we have a
mutual aid agreement that says--it is not a written agreement.
It says, ``you call, we haul,'' so we make do with what we
have, and that is our biggest shortcoming, I think, as far as
influencing people who play by different rules.
Senator Kerry. Well, I am well aware of that, and
obviously, when you look at the total statistics that I recited
earlier, you see it in the conglomerate, and you are absolutely
correct. If you have a fire and it hits a particular defined
community people are very aware of it. The people outside kind
of gloss by it and say, oh, gosh, you know, another one. Until
you have a very significant disaster that hits a larger area,
people do not really connect to it, and everybody assumes you
know.
You drive by the firehouse and see the fire engines, see
the folks, and say oh, OK, that is what it is. You do not think
about the numbers of people, or what kind of shifts there may
be, or how well-trained people are, or whether or not the
equipment is up to date. There is a lot that is, indeed, taken
for granted.
Mr. Monihan. It is only a little over a month since Los
Alamos, New Mexico almost burned down. You see nothing in the
press about it. Nobody talks about it. It is past.
Senator Kerry. Understood. Well, point well-made. That is
why you have got some strong advocates up here, and hopefully
we will get this done. I thank you all very, very much for
taking the time to be with us today.
We stand adjourned. Thank you.
[Whereupon, at 11:15 a.m., the Committee adjourned.]
A P P E N D I X
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. John McCain to
Chief Luther L. Fincher, Jr.
Question 1. As I noted earlier, state governments are reporting record
surpluses each year and, as you well know, traditionally, fire
protection has been funded at the state and local level. What programs
are in place at the state level to help meet the needs of the fire and
emergency services?
Answer. Traditionally, fire and rescue departments are funded
locally. Most states do not have fire operations under their
jurisdictions although most have state training programs and a state
fire marshal function.
Question 2. Are you taking steps to enact funding programs similar to
the FIRE Act at the state level?
Answer. Many state fire service organizations have approached state
legislatures but uniformly without success.
Question 3. I understand that based on each of your experiences you
have reached the conclusion that the fire and emergency services are in
need of increased federal funding. Have any of your organizations
conducted an empirical study to pinpoint where additional funding would
be most helpful?
Answer. No. The International Association of Fire Chiefs would
strongly support a national survey of America's fire and emergency
service to identify critical needs.
Question 4. I realize the lure of federal funding can be very
appealing. In the past, however, we have seen similar grant programs
evolve and become burdened with federal requirements that usurp local
control of government. Do any of you have concerns that federal
mandates may eventually be a part of the grant program you envision?
Answer. There already are federal mandates in a number of areas of
fire service operations (e.g., bloodborne pathogens, hazardous
materials, self contained breathing apparatus, vehicle standards,
communications equipment, EMS). We doubt there would be new federal
mandates as a result of a competitive grant program. A major purpose of
the program will be to bring fire and emergency departments up to
current federal and consensus standards to ensure safe operations for
fire fighters/medics as well as the public they serve.
Question 5. What information was used to derive the $1 billion per-year
funding level?
Answer. Representative Pascrell developed this funding level
without consultation with this organization.
Question 6. The bill would allow the use of the grants to hire
personnel. I can see how this would help the career departments but
what does the bill do to help attract and retain volunteer fire
fighters?
Answer. The primary assistance for volunteer fire departments will
be in the form of training, providing personal protective equipment,
supplying sufficient self contained breathing apparatus, and helping to
ensure safe fire and rescue vehicles. The purpose of the legislation is
safety and health for emergency responders. To the extent volunteer
fire and rescue departments can demonstrate safer operations that will
assist in recruiting and retaining volunteer members.
Question 7. The bill would allow the use of the grant money for
wellness and fitness programs. Can you describe to me what specific
need this addresses and how this need is currently going unmet?
Answer. One of the major safety issues for fire and rescue
personnel is fitness and wellness. Many of the large, well-funded fire
departments have fitness/wellness programs to improve service delivery
and to reduce fire fighter injury and death. Fitness/wellness is just
one of many aspects in preparing personnel and departments to respond
safely and to operate effectively. This is an unmet need in the
preparedness of the medium sized and smaller departments.
Question 8. As currently drafted, the FIRE Act provides no mechanism
for auditing the grants made under the program to ensure that the funds
are being used for the appropriate purposes nor does it include
provisions to measure the effectiveness of the program over time. Would
you support the inclusions of such provisions in the bill?
Answer. Yes. An audit function MUST be a provision in the enabling
legislation and the implementing regulations.
Question 9. In the Senate version of the FIRE Act, ten percent of the
funds are set aside for education programs. However, fire departments
would not be the only organizations that would qualify for the funds,
but national, state, local or community organizations as well. What is
the position of the IAFC/IAFF/NVFC regarding non-fire service
organizations qualifying for these funds?
Answer. As we stated in our testimony, the ICHIEFS preference would
be for the grant program to be exclusively for the fire and emergency
service.
Question 10. Reviewing the list of uses for the grant funds, I question
whether serious thought was given to targeting these funds on
challenges national in scope and whether departments would use the
funds to address actual needs rather than to purchasing ``wants.'' How
can we ensure that individual applications demonstrate an actual need
for these funds?
Answer. A national needs assessment would enable FEMA to adopt a
strict criteria against which applications for grant funding would be
judged. It will be the responsibility of the grant administrator,
reviewing grant requests on a competitive basis, to ensure that funds
are appropriately directed.
Question 11. During the testimony, one of the witnesses suggested that
the average amount of a grant would be relatively small based on the
number of fire departments in this country. On the other hand, these
funds would be exhausted in short order if every department seeking
grants used the funds to purchase apparatus. Do you support the use of
these funds for purchasing apparatus and what type of impact would this
have on reducing the threat of fire and other dangers in our nation?
Answer. We do not support using the funds to purchase apparatus.
Question 12. Would you support a requirement for departments seeking
funds to provide National Fire Incident Reporting data to the United
States Fire Administration?
Answer. Yes. I testified for ICHIEFS before the Subcommittee on
Basic Research of the House Committee on Science March 23, 1999 as
follows:
``. . . to substantially increase funding for the National Fire
Incident Reporting System. This is an extremely important
recommendation since the mission of the U.S. Fire
Administration cannot be fully implemented until a detailed
analysis documents the full extent of our nation's fire
problem. Accurate and complete fire loss information is
critical for the complete analysis and documentation of the
nation's fire problem. It is essential to track cause of fire,
fire injuries and deaths, arson patterns, the effectiveness of
fire prevention programs, and other information needed for the
U.S. Fire Administration to identify a plan of action.
``Federal programs designed to support state and local law
enforcement are based largely on statistical evidence
demonstrating and identifying areas that would benefit from
such support and assistance. For decades, law enforcement has
had a national incident reporting system that covers just about
100% of America. Not so with the fire incident reporting
system.
``There is a clear need for an updated and mandatory fire
reporting system. This will help identify areas where federal
support can make a critical difference in local fire and
emergency response, and enhance the ability of the federal
government to design appropriate programs to assist local fire
departments with their protective mission.''
______
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. John McCain to
E. James Monihan
Question 1. As I noted earlier, state governments are reporting record
surpluses each year and, as you well know, traditionally, fire
protection has been funded at the state and local level. What programs
are in place at the state level to help meet the needs of the fire and
emergency services?
Answer. The degree to which state and local governments fund their
emergency service varies across the nation. However, regardless of the
assistance received at the local and state level, it does not change
the fact that the federal government does have a role in supporting the
emergency services. The fire service's ever-increasing responsibilities
are a consequence of both local directives and actions of the federal
government. The federal government is asking the fire service to
respond to calls involving terrorism, hazardous materials, natural and
man-made disasters and wildland/urban interface fires. In addition,
many of these emergencies occur on federal properties such as national
parks and lands, interstate highways and in federal buildings.
Question 2. Are you taking steps to enact funding programs similar to
the FIRE Act at the state level?
Answer. Part of the National Volunteer Fire Council's (NVFC)
membership is made up of each state association. The NVFC serves as a
conduit of information between those state associations regarding
programs being worked on at the state level. Unfortunately, the degree
to which state governments fund their emergency service varies across
the nation.
Question 3. I understand that based on each of your experiences you
have reached the conclusion that the fire and emergency services are in
need of increased federal funding. Have any of your organizations
conducted an empirical study to pinpoint where additional funding would
be most helpful?
Answer. The NVFC has not conducted an empirical study to pinpoint
where additional funding would be most helpful. However, we feel there
has long been a need to perform a nationwide fire service needs
assessment in the fire service. This assessment would help the federal
government to better understand just how severe the shortages in some
fire departments are.
We think that an organization with a substantial knowledge of the
fire service and a proven track record of gathering data should conduct
this type of survey. However, due to the large diversity of the fire
service, a statistical sample may not tell the whole story. The needs
of this nation's rural volunteer fire departments must be accounted
for. In addition, any nationwide assessment survey should come under
the direction and be funded by the U.S. Fire Administration.
Question 4. I realize the lure of federal funding can be very
appealing. In the past, however, we have seen similar grant programs
evolve and become burdened with federal requirements that usurp local
control of government. Do you have any concerns that federal mandates
may eventually be a part of the grant program you envision?
Answer. The fire service already has to deal with unfunded mandates
that have come down from federal government. The federal government has
told the fire service the minimum amount of firefighters needed to
attack a fire, and has asked the fire service to respond to calls
involving terrorism, hazardous materials, natural and man-made
disasters and wildland/urban interface fires. These are just a few of
the burdens and requirements that we are already dealing with without
monetary support. Therefore, the prospect of `strings' being attached
is nothing new.
In addition, when federal dollars are used to build new interstate
highways, they often run through small communities protected by a
volunteer fire department. These small town fire companies must respond
to a huge influx of auto accidents, some involving hazardous materials.
They are already struggling to handle their own needs and finances, and
are now forced to provide more services, and receive no compensation
for their responses.
Finally, we suggest that stakeholders such as the NVFC should be a
part of developing criteria for these grants to ensure that they do not
become burdened with federal requirements that usurp local control of
government.
Question 5. What information was used to derive the $1 billion per-year
funding level?
Answer. The $1 billion per-year funding level was a number come up
with first by Rep. Curt Weldon (R-PA) and Rep. William Pascrell (D-NJ)
when they introduced the FIRE Act (H.R. 1168). Sen. Mike DeWine (R-OH)
and Sen. Christopher Dodd have included the same funding level in the
Senate version of the FIRE Bill (S. 1941). With some fire apparatus
costing more than $500,000 and other new life saving but expensive
technology constantly becoming available, this funding level is
necessary to properly assist the more than 30,000 fire departments in
the United States.
Question 6. The bill would allow the use of the grants to hire
personnel. I can see how this would help the career departments but
what does the bill do to help attract and retain volunteer fire
fighters?
Answer. Constant fundraising demands are intertwined into every
aspect of volunteer fire and emergency services, affecting the
recruitment of new members, the retention of existing members, and the
ability to train members. If a volunteer fire department is better
equipped, the firefighters can spend more time training and less time
fundraising. In addition, the NVFC does support adding a provision to
this bill that would allow volunteer fire departments to apply for
grants in order to carry our recruitment and retention programs. Also,
some fire departments can use the grant money to hire staff to
supplement their volunteers in the daytime when many volunteers are
unavailable.
Question 7. The bill would allow the use of grant money for wellness
and fitness programs. Can you describe to me what specific needs this
addresses and how this need is currently going unmet?
Answer. According to the National Fire Protection Association,
heart attacks are the number cause of death in the fire service.
Unfortunately, most volunteer fire departments do not have the
resources to implement a program to keep their firefighters in proper
physical shape.
Question 8. As currently drafted, the FIRE Act provides no mechanism
for auditing the grants made under the program to ensure that the funds
are being used for the appropriate purposes nor does it include
provision to measure the effectiveness of the program over time. Would
you support inclusions of such provision in the bill?
Answer. YES.
Question 9. In the Senate version of the FIRE Act, ten percent of the
funds are set aside for education programs. However, fire departments
would not be the only organizations that would qualify for the funds,
but national, state, local, or community organizations as well. What is
the position of the IAFC/IAFF/NVFC regarding non-fire service
organizations qualifying for these funds?
Answer. The NVFC has always advocated a program where funds go
directly to individual fire departments. However, if the provision
allowing other non-fire groups to qualify for the funds were in the
final bill, we would support any of their efforts to reduce fire deaths
in the United States.
Question 10. Reviewing the list of uses for the grant funds, I question
whether serious thought was given to targeting these funds on
challenges national in scope and whether departments would use the
funds to address actual needs rather than to purchasing ``wants.'' How
can we ensure that individual applications demonstrate an actual need
for these funds?
Answer. It must be left up to the fire department applying for the
grant to show there is a real need for these funds. The grant review
process must take into account a department's budget, the area
protected, etc. In addition, stakeholders such as the NVFC should be a
part of developing criteria for these grants to ensure that they are
targeted on challenges national in scope.
Question 11. During the testimony, one of the witnesses suggested that
the average amount of a grant would be relatively small based on the
number of fire departments in this country. On the other hand, these
funds would be exhausted in short order if every department seeking
grants used the funds to purchase apparatus. Do you support the use of
these funds for purchasing apparatus and what type of impact would this
have on reducing the threat of fire and other damages in our nation?
Answer. The NVFC does support the use of funds to purchase or
refurbish apparatus. However, this legislation addresses your concerns
that the funds may be exhausting too quickly by containing a provision
allowing only 25% of the funds to go to purchasing apparatus.
Question 12. Would you support a requirement for departments seeking
funds to provide National Fire Incident Reporting data to the United
States Fire Administration?
Answer. The NVFC does support a requirement for departments seeking
funds to provide National Fire Incident Reporting data to the U.S. Fire
Administration. If more departments provide information to the National
Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS), we would better be able to
grasp the depth of the fire problem in the United States. However, it
must be noted that many volunteer fire departments lack the time and
resources to be able to report this data.
______
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. John McCain to
Billy Shields
Questions 1 and 2. As I noted earlier state governments are reporting
record surpluses each year and, as you well know, traditionally, fire
protection has been funded at the state and local level. What programs
are in place at the state level to help meet the needs of the fire and
emergency services?
Are you taking steps to enact funding programs similar to the FIRE
Act at the state level?
Answer. A variety of programs exist in different states, many of
which are included in the data Senator DeWine's office compiled and
provided to your staff. But clearly states need to do more. As
proponents of the FIRE Act, we do not envision the federal government
becoming the major or even a major funder of the fire service. That
responsibility will continue to rest with states and localities, and we
call on all states to do whatever they can to ensure adequate funding
of the fire service.
We are certainly sympathetic to concerns that the federal
government should not be thought of as a first alternative when it
comes to funding. Federal funds should not go to jurisdictions where
there are untapped financial resources. We would therefore support
requiring grant applications to include a discussion of alternative
sources of funding. Such a requirement would enable FEMA to take local
financial conditions into account in deciding which grant applications
are most deserving.
But the issue before Congress is not whether the states are doing
enough, but whether the federal government is doing enough. While fire
protection will always be primarily a local government responsibility,
there clearly is a federal role. Numerous aspects of fire protection
ranging from border issues to hazardous material transportation to
terrorism have a major federal component, yet the federal government
has yet to live up to its responsibility to shoulder its fair share of
the funding burden.
Moreover, the federal government already spends billions of dollars
every year to support such local government functions as law
enforcement, education and roads. Providing federal funding for a wide
variety of local government services, while denying any support for the
fire service based on the argument that it is a local responsibility is
tantamount to discriminating against me because I am a fire fighter.
Teachers and cops are not told ``go talk to your Governor,'' so why
should I be?
Question 3. I understand that based on each of your experiences you
have reached the conclusion that the fire and emergency services are in
need of increased federal funding. Have any of your organizations
conducted an empirical study to pinpoint where additional funding would
be most helpful?
Answer. As I discussed in my testimony, the IAFF conducted a survey
of our State Associations. While unscientific, the survey provides a
shocking glimpse of just how dire the funding situation is. For example
3 out of 4 fire departments are currently estimated to be operating
with unsafe staffing levels. We would certainly support a more
scientific survey of fire department needs to help pinpoint areas of
greatest need, but there is no need to hold up the legislation while
the survey is being conducted. We already know a great need exists, and
it would be a waste of precious resources to study what is essentially
a rhetorical question.
Question 4. I realize the lure of federal funding can be very
appealing. In the past, however, we have seen similar grant programs
evolve and become burdened with federal requirements that usurp local
control of government. Do any of you have concerns that federal
mandates may eventually be a part of the grant program you envision?
Answer. Because the FIRE Act would require fire departments to seek
funding for specific purposes rather than general operating expenses we
believe the program is much less susceptible to being burdened with
federal requirements. But even if it were, we would not view this as an
impediment to enacting the legislation. If the federal government did
choose to attach strings to the funding, localities would be free to
avoid federal entanglements simply by not applying for a grant.
Question 5. What information was used to derive the $1 billion per-year
funding level?
Answer. We were not involved in the initial drafting of the
legislation where the $1 billion figure first surfaced, but we can
assure you that this amount is more than fully justified. The actual
need is much greater. It is important to note that the $1 billion
figure is an authorization, not an appropriation. Congress would be
free to appropriate whatever amount it deemed appropriate each year, so
long as it did not exceed $1 billion. For example, the Local Law
Enforcement Block Grant program is authorized at $2 billion a year, but
is appropriated at approximately $500 million.
Question 6. The bill would allow the use of the grants to hire
personnel. I can see how this would help the career departments but
what does the bill do to help attract and retain volunteer fire
fighters?
Answer. Volunteer fire departments are often the ones most in need
of funding for a variety of essential fire service needs such as
equipment and training. More training and equipment could help lead to
more volunteer fire fighters. In areas where there simply are not
enough people willing to volunteer, funding could be used to hire a few
paid fire fighters to supplement the work of the volunteer fire
fighters thus assuring the continued role of the volunteer fire
company.
Question 7. The bill would allow the use of grant money for wellness
and fitness programs. Can you describe to me what specific need this
addresses and how this need is currently going unmet?
Answer. Physical fitness is an absolute must in the fire service.
If a fire fighter is not in prime physical condition, he or she can not
perform their duties and they jeopardize not only their own safety but
also the safety of other fire fighters at the scene, and ultimately the
public. Wellness/Fitness programs--which include such things as
nutrition counseling, smoking cessation programs, and exercise--have
proven effective in promoting a physically fit workforce.
In Phoenix, our wellness/fitness program resulted in a dramatic
decline in the number of Workman's Compensation claims and days lost
due to injury. Unfortunately, most fire departments are unable to
afford such a program or this is the last priority in their budgets
which never gets funded.
Question 8. As currently drafted, the FIRE Act provides no mechanism
for auditing the grants made under the program to ensure that the funds
are being used for the appropriate purposes nor does it include
provisions to measure the effectiveness of the program over time. Would
you support the inclusions of such provisions in the bill?
Answer. Yes.
Question 9. In the Senate version of the FIRE Act, ten percent of the
funds are set aside for education programs. However, fire departments
would not be the only organizations that would qualify for the funds,
but national, state, local or community organizations as well. What is
the position of the IAFC/IAFF/NVFC regarding non-fire service
organizations qualifying for these funds?
Answer. We believe money provided under the FIRE Act should go to
local fire departments, which are quite capable and have a long history
of running effective fire prevention education programs.
Question 10. Reviewing the list of uses for the grant funds, I question
whether serious thought was given to targeting these funds on
challenges national in scope and whether departments would use the
funds to address actual needs rather than to purchasing ``wants.'' How
can we ensure that individual applications demonstrate an actual need
for these funds?
Answer. First, the matching fund requirement assures that
localities are committed to expending their own resources. We would not
be averse to increasing the match required if this became a significant
obstacle to passage of the legislation.
Second, FEMA should be directed to consider the seriousness of the
need in deciding which grant applications to award. The number of
applications is sure to dwarf the funds available, so FEMA would be
able to assure that FIRE Act funding only go to jurisdictions that can
demonstrate a compelling need.
Question 11. During the testimony, one of the witnesses suggested that
the average amount of a grant would be relatively small based on the
number of fire departments in this country. On the other hand, these
funds would be exhausted in short order if every department seeking
grants used the funds to purchase apparatus. Do you support the use of
these funds for purchasing apparatus and what type of impact would this
have on reducing the threat of fire and other dangers in our nation?
Answer. We believe the amount used to purchase apparatus should be
severely limited to ensure that funding is available to protect fire
fighter health and safety through better equipment, training and
staffing.
Question 12. Would you support a requirement for departments seeking
funds to provide National Fire Incident Reporting data to the United
States Fire Administration?
Answer. Absolutely.
______
Response to Written Questions Submitted by Hon. John McCain to
Chief James Whitworth
Question 1. As I noted earlier, state governments are reporting record
surpluses each year and, as you well know, traditionally, fire
protection has been funded at the state and local level. What programs
are in place at the state level to help meet the needs of the fire and
emergency services?
Answer. Ohio offers grants through the State Fire Marshal's Office,
Ohio Department of Natural Resources, and the Ohio Department of Public
Safety Division of Emergency Medical Service. The Fire Marshal's grant
is directed toward volunteer departments serving communities with a
population of 10,000 or less. The annual grant offered $1,388,236 for
the 2000 fiscal year. The Fire Marshal received 546 applications
requesting over $7.3 million.
The Ohio Department of Natural Resources directs their small grant
program toward rural fire departments and is a cost-sharing grant for
minor fire fighting equipment or training. As you can imagine the
response to their grant is similar to that experienced by the Fire
Marshal's Office.
The grant program offered by the Ohio Department of Public Safety
Division of Emergency Medical Service is focused on emergency medical
service training, equipment, and research. The amount available for
fiscal 2000 is about $4 million. All public emergency medical services
and those private services under contract to a municipality or township
qualify for this grant program. Miami Township was awarded about
$15,300 split 60/40 between training and equipment.
Ohio also offers a low interest loan program for small rural
communities to build fire stations and purchase apparatus.
Question 2. Are you taking steps to enact funding programs similar to
the FIRE Act at the state level?
Answer. To my knowledge there has not been a recent effort to
increase funding for Ohio's fire service similar to the FIRE Act.
Currently the Ohio Fire Chief's Association, Fire Fighter's
Association, and Professional Fire Fighter's Association are trying to
discover why, in the face of increasing revenues from insurance
premiums, the budget for the Fire Marshal's Office is shrinking. The
funds are the sole support for the Marshal's Office and the State Fire
Academy.
Question 3. I understand that based on each of your experiences you
have reached the conclusion that the fire and emergency services are in
need of increased federal funding. Have any of your organizations
conducted an empirical study to pinpoint where additional funding would
be most helpful?
Answer. I am not aware of any empirical studies conducted in Ohio
to pinpoint or prioritize where money should be spent to have the
greatest impact on service delivery to its citizens. However, it is
difficult to do meaningful empirical studies when the fire departments
are the ``go-to'' agencies, doing almost all types of emergency
service. Most programs have been designed to address the needs
identified in America Burning, the statistics generated by the National
Fire Incident Reporting System, and the report generated in the 1970's
regarding the delivery of emergency medical services on our national,
state and local roadways.
Question 4. I realize the lure of federal funding can be very
appealing. In the past, however, we have seen similar grant programs
evolve and become burdened with federal requirements that usurp local
control of government. Do any of you have concerns that federal
mandates may eventually be a part of the grant program you envision?
Answer. Certainly, I am concerned about additional mandates
affecting how service is delivered on the local level. However, we are
currently saddled with multiple unfunded mandates that have a profound
effect on our ability to deliver services at the local level. As cited
in my written testimony we are required to follow regulations
promulgated by the U.S. Department of Labor, U.S. Environmental
Protection Agency, U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration,
Federal Communications Commission, etc. In addition, there are
standards making organizations, such as the National Fire Protection
Association, that establish important safety and operating standards.
However, the result is the same as with federal regulations: no money
or resources are provided to achieve the utopian world created in the
regulations and standards. We are left to conduct even more pancake
breakfasts, bingos, or request the community to fork over more of their
hard earned money in the form of property taxes. And, when taken to
court after an unfortunate incident, the department is held to those
standards.
Many departments operate with minimal or no training, inadequate or
no fire fighter protective clothing, inadequate or unsafe apparatus,
minimal or inadequate tools, provide no public education or fire safety
inspections, etc. If federal mandates to improve community safety and
the safety of the emergency responder are imposed and, are accompanied
by adequate federal funding, then we, and those we serve, are better
off.
Question 5. What information was used to derive the $1 billion per-year
funding level?
Answer. I do not know. And, I am concerned that it may not be
enough to bring local emergency response agencies to an adequate level
to address the myriad of needs in our communities today, and comply
with federal regulations and standards. But, it is a start.
Question 6. The bill would allow the use of the grants to hire
personnel. I can see how this would help the career departments but
what does the bill do to help attract and retain volunteer fire
fighters?
Answer. With all due respect, the staffing issue is exceedingly
more complex than your question implies. Many of the medium and small
size departments employ a combination of career, part time, paid-on-
call and volunteer employees. These departments are a result of
evolution due to a lack of volunteers who have the time to be trained
to an adequate and safe level, and commit to emergency responses. The
true volunteer is a dying breed. I believe that in most regions of the
country those we call volunteers are actually paid-on-call (for a flat
fee or an hourly rate) and respond from their homes and businesses when
they are available.
Yes, there are those who are willing to be true volunteers.
However, what motivates them to make this most serious of commitments,
and take personal risks to serve strangers for multiple years, varies
almost by the individual. Some desire simply to serve their fellow man.
Others want quality training and equipment. Some need the camaraderie
of a group united in a single purpose. And, there are those that are
only interested in the excitement provided by the use of lights and
sirens. Still others desire a supplement to their income, health
insurance coverage, or a small retirement benefit.
Successful volunteer recruitment and retention are based on
providing a variety of opportunities and ``benefits''. There is no
``one size fits all'' solution.
Question 7. The bill would allow the use of grant money for wellness
and fitness programs. Can you describe to me what specific need this
addresses and how this need is currently going unmet?
Answer. Over 100 fire fighters died in the line of duty during
1999. About half of the deaths were due to a cardiac event. Although
not quantified in the studies I have read, many of these deaths were
likely due to a lack of physical conditioning in a physically demanding
profession. Many times the fire fighter goes from being at rest to a
high level of physical activity for several hours, in a very short time
period. Even when the tone sounds and the incident is for another
station the fire fighter who gets to stay at the station or home
receives an auto-injection of adrenalin. This is called ``alarm-
stress''. Over the years this takes its toll on an emergency
responder's physical plant.
There are thousands of emergency responders (career, part time,
paid-on-call, and volunteer) who are injured every year. Many of these
injuries are consistent with, and likely due to, a lack of adequate
physical conditioning.
Miami Township is fortunate to be able to provide a small exercise
room with minimal aerobic and strength conditioning equipment (some
provided by employees) in each of our three stations. In addition, we
reimburse an employee's monthly membership fee (about $20) at a local
exercise club, if they exercise 8 times that month. However, this is
not the case among smaller departments or those with fewer resources
than Miami Township: especially those departments who are volunteer
and/or paid-on-call.
This points out the importance of having flexibility to use the
FIRE Act funds in the manner most beneficial to the local emergency
response agency and its community.
Question 8. As currently drafted, the FIRE Act provides no mechanism
for auditing the grants made under the program to ensure that the funds
are being used for the appropriate purposes nor does it include
provisions to measure the effectiveness of the program over time. Would
you support the inclusions of such provisions in the bill?
Answer. Grant money without strings is unheard of in today's world.
However, the smaller the department the less able they are to provide
the administrative accountability and clerical support to satisfy any
but the simplest grant accounting requirements. This presents a
``Catch-22'' situation wherein a department will need to hire someone
to administer a grant thereby needing additional funds just for this
purpose.
Miami Township assisted a couple local departments with their
initial application for Ohio's Department of Public Safety Division of
Emergency Medical Service grant when they were first offered in the
early 1990's. The positive side of this grant is that there is minimal
follow-up reporting required. The downside is that the grant awards are
generally small and narrowly focused on emergency medical training and
equipment.
Audit mechanisms and criteria to measure program effectiveness must
be kept to a minimum, especially for small and volunteer departments.
Also, the application process needs to be simple so as not to
discourage medium and small departments from applying.
Question 9. In the Senate version of the FIRE Act, ten percent of the
funds are set aside for education programs. However, fire departments
would not be the only organizations that would qualify for the funds,
but national, state, local or community organizations as well. What is
the position of the IAFC/IAFF/NVFC regarding non-fire service
organizations qualifying for these funds?
Answer. This is a bill to fund fire and emergency services. The
intent is to improve fire and emergency service response to the wide
variety of emergencies confronting our communities today, as well as
helping us make our communities safer through early mitigation and
public education. Miami Township has an active and, we believe,
effective public safety education program. The bill, as I understand
it, would allow another non-fire community organization to qualify for
funding to offer competing/duplicate programming. I'm not jealous, but
I am concerned that this will dilute the already minimal funds proposed
in the FIRE Act. In turn, this will likely have a negative impact on
the funds available to Miami Township for meaningful improvements in
the areas in which they are needed.
Miami Township tries to expend the valuable funds we receive from
the public in the most efficient manner possible. If measures can be
included in the FIRE Act to avoid duplicate or unnecessary programming
I would feel a little better about the designation of ten percent of
the funding to education programs. (However, as was discussed in the
question regarding the accountability of grant funds, this type of
provision would undoubtedly cause a more complicated application and
grant review process.)
Question 10. Reviewing the list of uses for the grant funds, I question
whether serious thought was given to targeting these funds on
challenges national in scope and whether departments would use the
funds to address actual needs rather than to purchasing ``wants.'' How
can we ensure that individual applications demonstrate an actual need
for these funds?
Answer. The further from the source that funds are distributed the
more likely that fraud and frivolous spending will occur. Without
putting an expensive bureaucracy in place to oversee the spending I am
not sure that anyone can give you assurances that needs and not
``wants'' are met. I can say that Ohio already disburses money to the
emergency services and has mechanisms in place to oversee appropriate
spending of grant funds, without creating a daunting application and
accountability process.
As far as assuring that the funds are targeted on challenges of
national scope let me reiterate that the fire loss and fire injury
problem is a national travesty. Also, local emergency responders attend
to emergencies on federal highways and in federal installations,
respond to terrorist acts, respond to hazardous material releases that
cross local and state boundaries, and first respond to natural
disasters that occur without regard to political jurisdictions. Most of
the resources and assets needed to address national issues are the same
as those needed for response to ``local'' emergencies.
Question 11. During the testimony, one of the witnesses suggested that
the average amount of a grant would be relatively small based on the
number of fire departments in this country. On the other hand, these
funds would be exhausted in short order if every department seeking
grants used the funds to purchase apparatus. Do you support the use of
these funds for purchasing apparatus and what type of impact would this
have on reducing the threat of fire and other dangers in our nation?
Answer. Apparatus and equipment do not reduce the threat of fire.
However, they are instrumental in the process to minimize the impact of
the disaster on the critical infrastructure and our nation's citizens.
Miami Township has a need to replace its aging fleet of emergency
response apparatus, and through creative financing methods we are
slowly managing to fill that need. Our critical need is for personnel
to meet the safety standards and regulations imposed on us. The point
is, every department will not need to purchase apparatus, or hire
people, or implement public safety education programs. The bill allows
for flexibility to fund the most critical needs of the local emergency
response agency and its community.
I agree that $1 billion per year disbursed across this great
country will pale in comparison to the actual need. However, Miami
Township is not looking to the federal government to provide for all
our community's emergency response needs. Miami Township is looking for
a partner to help address the federal regulations and standards we are
required to meet. Miami Township is looking for a partner to help us
respond to emergencies that occur on the interstate highway that
bisects our community. Miami Township is looking for a partner to help
us protect the nations critical infrastructure. Miami Township is
looking for a partner to help us prepare for response to a release from
the Uranium Hexafluoride shipments traveling from Portsmouth, Ohio to a
Nevada waste site, and to respond to acts of terrorism.
My compatriot is right. The average potential grant award would be
small when spread across all the nations fire departments. However, we
need to start somewhere and the FIRE Act is the appropriate means.
Question 12. Would you support a requirement for departments seeking
funds to provide National Fire Incident Reporting data to the United
States Fire Administration?
Answer. NFIRS data is critical to defining the problem and tracking
improvements in the fire and emergency response field. In addition to
tying a reporting requirement to the grant, consideration should be
given to providing funding to assist a department in meeting the
reporting requirement. There will probably be some fire departments
that will not participate in NFIRS data submissions or the grants
resulting from the FIRE Act. However, efforts should be made to
encourage participation in both.
______
Prepared Statement of Robert A. DiPoli, Chief, Needham Fire Department,
Needham, Massachusetts
Introduction
My name is Robert A. DiPoli. I am the Fire Chief in Needham,
Massachusetts, a suburb of Boston. I am a thirty-year veteran of the
Fire Service and Fire Chief for the past twelve years. In addition, I
am the Past President of both the Fire Chiefs Association of
Massachusetts and the New England Division of the International
Association of Fire Chiefs. For three years, I traveled all over the
United States in a campaign effort for Vice President of the
International Association of Fire Chiefs. I currently serve as Director
of Governmental Affairs, for the Fire Chiefs Association of
Massachusetts.
Statement
Mr. Chairman. Let me begin by thanking you for holding a hearing on
the FIRE ACT. I was present in your chambers, but not on the panels. I
thought the hearing was sincere, and some legitimate issues were
discussed.
While, I have a pretty good handle of the issues facing the
nation's Fire Service, I will concentrate on matters closer to home.
For the past twelve years, I have been at the helm of the Needham Fire
Department. Needham is a fairly affluent community of approximately
thirty thousand people, located to the southwest of Boston. The
Interstate I-95 corridor runs through the community, as well as rail
lines. Needham is in a heavily traveled flight path, from Logan
International Airport. The Needham Fire Department is a career
department, with seventy full time employees. The department responds
to approximately three thousand emergency calls per year. These calls
are a mix of fire responses and emergency medical calls. The department
operates a fleet of apparatus consisting of three Pumping Engines, one
Ladder Truck, two Rescue Ambulances and numerous small vehicles. The
apparatus is housed in two stations.
Proposition 2\1/2\, a tax limiting measure was enacted by a
statewide election in 1981. This measure limits new revenue by property
taxes to 2\1/2\% per year. Even in a robust economy, the cost of
operating the fire department increases by at least that much. Fuel
costs have doubled in the last year alone. Education takes the lion's
share of the available revenue each year, leaving the remaining
services to compete for what is left. My instructions each year as I
prepare my operating budget, is to level fund the fire department. When
you factor in cost of living raises and inflation, I lose a piece of
the department every year. I have been forced to layoff young
firefighters, just starting out in their careers. My department runs
apparatus short staffed every day. Most days, whole companies are
placed out of service. This hampers our ability to protect our
citizens, as well as contribute to our Mutual Aid program to the
thirty-three communities in our region.
You raised a question about, what is the State doing for the Local
Fire Departments. We are probably better off than most, when it comes
to State involvement of the local fire service. This is due to a
combination of innovative and aggressive leadership of the fire chiefs
in the state, along with a good level of respect and cooperation of our
state legislators. We have a highly effective State Fire Marshals
Office that provides many support services to the local fire
departments. We have an excellent Statewide Regional Hazardous
Materials Response Program. We have an excellent State Fire Training
System. We witnessed the effectiveness of these services recently,
during the Worcester Fire tragedy.
We also have fire departments operating out of station houses
condemned by the local building inspector. We have fire departments
responding to alarms in apparatus that should have Antique plates on
them. What we are lacking is a program to assist the poorer communities
in building new stations and acquiring new apparatus. We are not
looking for a free lunch program, or a federal bailout for local
services.
We need the FIRE ACT, and the assistance it will provide to
America's domestic defenders. We need to take a positive step to reduce
the loss of life and property damage every day across our great nation.
I cannot think of a better investment of some federal dollars, than
preventing fires, and the resulting losses.
Thank you for allowing the hearing on this badly needed
legislation, and for the opportunity to add my testimony. Please
support the FIRE ACT!
______
The Proof Is In--Thermal Imagers Save Lives!
Of all the operations in which thermal imaging can improve a
firefighter's tactics, this technology probably has its most dramatic
impact on search and rescue operations. Firefighters using thermal
imaging cameras have regained their vision and can now quickly navigate
to identify victims based on sight.
In the past year, Bullard, the leading thermal imager manufacturer
in the US, has been tracking stories from the field--about firefighters
who have rescued civilians and firefighters who have been spared from
injury when they were using a Bullard Thermal Imaging Camera on the
job. These stories are summarized as follows.
Four Lives Spared/Florence, SC/May 22, 2000--A strip mall fire on May
22 in Florence, South Carolina, nearly took the lives of four
firefighters who were battling the blaze. These firefighters narrowly
escaped a building collapse when a concealed ceiling fire nearly cut
off their exit.
Firefighters arrived on scene around 1:30 a.m. Firefighter/Driver
Phillip Lee pulled one of the department's Bullard Thermal Imagers from
Engine 141 and entered a front window to size up the fire. Lieutenant
Jim Sills employed another Bullard Thermal Imager to help the two-
person attack team begin their navigation through the building.
Though the smoke was blinding, Lee was able to see fire conditions
clearly with the Bullard Thermal Imager. ``It was so hot in the room
that my skin was tingling. I trained the camera on the ceiling, and I
saw a solid pure white image, with a brighter white in the front of the
room,'' Lee said. ``The fire had spread through the ceiling and was
already behind the crew, cutting off our exit.''
Lee sensed an imminent structural collapse and reported the
situation to Lieutenant Charles Matthews, who was in command inside the
structure. Lieutenant Matthews responded quickly. ``I told them to get
out, and get out now. Within just a few minutes, the building collapsed
where we had been working.''
Lee believes that without the thermal imager, the crew could have
easily been trapped in the building. ``The building was built with
bowstring construction, and the metal has a tendency to give when it
gets hot. We would have never thought the fire could have gotten behind
us like that. Without the thermal imager, the building would have
fallen in on us,'' he said.
Thermal Imager Helps Five Firefighters Escape Before Collapse/Windham,
NH, March 17, 2000--On Friday, March 17 at about 2 a.m., the Windham
Fire Department was dispatched to a fire at a strip mall. The structure
was filled with heavy smoke, and indications were that the fire had
started on the lower level. With Bullard Thermal Imager in hand,
Lieutenant Jay Moltenbrey took the lead position into the smoke-filled
lower level, followed by Firefighter Tom McPherson and Firefighter Mike
Mistretta. A second crew of two made separate entry on the same level
to search for the source of the fire.
Though the smoke was blinding, Moltenbrey was able to see with the
thermal imager. Training the imager on the ceiling, he saw that the
entire ceiling showed as gleaming white on the screen, indicating that
it contained heavy concealed fire. Moltenbrey sensed an imminent
structural collapse and pulled both crews out of the building. Just
five minutes later, the ceiling collapsed.
Fire Chief Steven Fruchtman said the incident could have turned out
very differently if thermal imaging technology hadn't been available on
the scene. ``Had the camera not been available, I believe there would
have been some serious firefighter injuries or even a fatality due to
the heavy loads above when the floor collapsed,'' he said.
Lieutenant Moltenbrey agrees. ``If we hadn't had the camera, we
would have pushed in further looking for the seat of the fire, and we
probably wouldn't have looked in the ceiling. Truss floors are
lightweight and strong, but when you add heat and fire, they fail very
quickly. About half of firefighter deaths in the US are caused by
collapses of buildings of lightweight construction,'' he said.
43 Year-Old Man Rescued/Enterprise, Ala./February 19, 2000--When
firefighters arrived at Jimmy Ray Huguley's house at 6:30 p.m. on
February 19, flames were shooting out of the windows, and bystanders
reported that a voice had been heard coming from the front bedroom.
Firefighter Tim Driscoll led a team of three with the department's
Bullard Thermal Imager in hand--breaking the bedroom window and
climbing through it to search for the victim.
After navigating around the bed in zero visibility, Firefighter
Driscoll identified the shape of Mr. Huguley's body on the screen of
the thermal imager--lying face-down on the floor of the bedroom.
Firefighter Driscoll picked up the victim and passed him out the window
to Firefighter Eric Massey and Lieutenant Michael Kelley. Seconds after
Mr. Huguley was removed, there was a flashover in the bedroom. Driscoll
quickly jumped through the window, escaping the structure without
injury. Mr. Huguley is currently in critical condition at the
University of Alabama Birmingham.
Enterprise Fire Department Chief Byron Herring explained that the
camera allowed firefighters to immediately find the victim. ``Due to
the smoke and excessive heat, the firefighters would not have had time
to find him under normal procedures,'' Chief Herring said. ``Without
the camera, there's no doubt in my mind that we would have had loss of
life in the building.''
Firefighters Use Camera to Escape Flashover/Monroe, Ohio/January 8,
2000--A house fire in Monroe, Ohio, that took the lives of three
civilians on January 8 nearly took the lives of two firefighters who
were battling the blaze. Firefighters Scott Clasgens and Andrew Turner
narrowly escaped entrapment after a nearby room exploded in flames.
Their comrades used the department's Bullard Thermal Imaging Camera to
find them and lead them to safety.
Firefighter Clasgens recounted the situation. ``We tried to get out
of the house, but there were flames in the stairwell on one end of the
hallway, and flames shooting out of the bedroom on the other end. We
were trapped in about a three by three space,'' he said. ``All kinds of
things flash through your mind in a situation like that. When we
perceived we were trapped, the heat seemed even hotter.''
At that point, Firefighter Turner made a distress call on his
radio: ``Mayday, Mayday, Mayday, firefighters trapped.'' Firefighters
Verdin and King were on their way out of the structure when they heard
the call. Using their thermal imaging camera to navigate, they rushed
into the hallway, extinguishing flames on the staircase, and found
their comrades in about 20 seconds. Clasgens estimates that without the
thermal imaging camera, it could have taken three to four minutes for
Verdin and King to find them ``by feel'' in the hallway.
Fire Chief Mark Neu said that the situation could have turned out
very differently if thermal imaging technology hadn't been available on
the scene. ``We could have lost two firefighters that day,'' Chief Neu
said. ``I can't tell you how happy I am that we had that camera.''
Elderly Woman Rescued/Somers, Conn./Dec. 23, 1999--When firefighters
were called to the home of Antoinette Pirog, they had a report of an
elderly bed-ridden woman trapped in the house. Firefighter Steve
Minikowski arrived on scene with the protection of a hoseline and the
Bullard Thermal Imaging Camera.
Minikowski recounted the scene from his perspective. ``I scanned to
the right and saw that the kitchen was clear. Then I scanned to the
left into the living room, and I saw her right away--about 15 feet away
from the camera. She really stood out because she was the hot spot in
that particular room. She showed as glowing white on the screen.''
Minikowski carried Pirog out of the house, while Van Tassel
navigated with the thermal imaging camera. The rescue was made about 15
seconds after entry into the burning structure. Pirog was quickly
lifted into the ambulance and rushed to Johnson Memorial Hospital in
Stafford, where she was treated for smoke inhalation and released later
that night.
Toddler Rescued/Franklin, Ind./Oct. 9, 1999--Two year-old Zachary
Sheets was lying face down in the hallway outside of his blazing
bedroom, barely breathing when firefighters arrived on the scene. Two
firefighters charged through the thick black smoke into Zachary's room,
knocking down the fire with their hoseline and beginning a search of
the room on their hands and knees.
Mark Hash arrived with the second unit and ran into the house with
the Bullard Thermal Imaging Camera. Within seconds of entering, he saw
the heat signature of Zachary's body on the screen of the camera,
tapped Firefighter Tim Coble for assistance and quickly removed the
toddler.
Firefighter Mark Hash recounted the rescue from his perspective.
``He jumped right out at me. There was no mistaking him for anything
else. In the screen of the camera, he looked like a baby doll as plain
as day lying on the floor.''
Speedy Search Aides Rescue/Charlottesville, Va./July 21, 1999--When
Charlottesville Firefighter Mike Oprandy forced open the door of the
burning house, the smoke was so thick that he might as well have had
his eyes shut. Somewhere in that house was Jesse Wicks, and Oprandy
knew that he would find him.
Crawling along the floor with his camera, Oprandy searched the
first level of the structure in less than a minute in zero visibility.
Oprandy and another firefighter, Clinton Wingfield, moved swiftly to
second level of the home, finding the stairs easily with the camera.
When they forced open the door at the top of the stairs, Wicks was
sitting on his bed. Firefighters safely removed him to the fresh air
outside.
Battalion Chief Charles L. Werner said thermal imaging technology
was critical in saving the 43 year-old man's life. ``Without the
camera, it would have taken us five minutes to search through the thick
smoke before going to the second floor. And after five minutes, Mr.
Wicks would have suffered serious injury and most likely would have
died from smoke inhalation.''
Firefighters Avoid Falling Through a Floor/Delta Township, Mich./July
8, 1999 --When firefighters near Lansing, Michigan responded to a call
in July about house fire, they arrived to find the structure filled
with blinding smoke and the fire burning through the roof. Firefighters
were uncertain about whether anyone was trapped inside when they forced
open the kitchen door.
Fire Marshall Paul Fabiano led with the Bullard Thermal Imager.
``The kitchen was black with smoke, so we couldn't see anything without
the camera,'' Fabiano said. ``When I scanned the floor, I saw that the
first part of the kitchen floor was still intact, but the center of the
floor was completely gone. So we turned around and made entry through
the front door.''
Fabiano continued, ``Firefighters are trained to ``sound'' or test
the floor while crawling along. In the heat of the excitement and the
with the possibility of trapped people, the firefighters may have
hurried and actually gone through the floor.''
Firefighters Escape Before Roof Collapse/Granbury, Tx./December 29,
1998--The Granbury, Texas, Volunteer Fire Department was called to a
fire at an old wooden auto repair warehouse in this community just
outside of Fort Worth. They entered the office area and scanned the
ceiling, seeing that the support beams were almost completely burned
through in several locations. Firefighters evacuated. Minutes later,
the building collapsed where they had been standing.
Captain Scott Cook of Granbury was one of the four firefighters who
escaped. ``No firefighters were trapped; no one was injured, and the
fight continued. This entire event occurred less than 5 minutes after
the initial entry. Without the view the imager gave us, the four-man
crew might not have come out,'' Cook said.