Excerpts from the ChicagoTribune.com:
The City of St. Charles has been awarded a Class 1 rating for fire protection from the Insurance Services Office (ISO), designating St. Charles as one of only 99 cities out of 45,000 surveyed in the United States to earn the elite ISO Class 1 status. This ranking could translate into lower fire insurance rates for St. Charles residents and businesses.
The St. Charles Fire Department is one of only 23 fire departments in the country to hold both the ISO Class 1 rating and International Accreditation from the Center for Public Safety Excellence.
ISO’s Public Protection Classification ratings are utilized to help establish appropriate fire insurance premiums for residential, commercial and industrial properties. The program provides an objective countrywide standard that helps fire departments plan and budget for facilities, equipment and training. ISO’s evaluation program includes 10 classifications, with 1 being the highest and 10 being the lowest.
The City of St. Charles scored 93.81 points out of 105.5 possible points during an ISO audit in January of this year. The rating is based upon a comprehensive review of fire department capabilities and efforts (50 percent), the water supply system (40 percent) and the emergency communications system (10 percent).
