chicagoareafire.com

4 Comments

• #1 by John on February 2, 2017 - 9:57 AM

  

  Thanks for the great info Bill Post

• #2 by Bill Post on February 1, 2017 - 10:22 PM

  

  No Rich the Chicago Fire Department was given a Class 2 rating back in the mid 1960’s. In fact they had the Class 2 rating since November 1st 1964. Since then they’ve had their ups and downs. I heard a rumor around 1968 that they were in danger of losing the Class 2 rating because of the unstable manpower situation and because they hadn’t been keeping up to date with the recommendations of original Maatman report. The Maatman report was a consultant study done in 1963/64 that made a series of recommendations including fire company relocations, the construction of new fire stations, and the purchase of apparatus. In 1968 a second Maatman report was done and the fire department was running with less per shift than in 1967. The city had reduced the working hours for firefighters by giving them an extra day off known as a “Daley day”. The city didn’t want to hire more firefighters to make up for the shortages. The new study had over half of the engines and trucks with only four men although companies in busier areas and downtown were regularly assigned five. The four-man companies six-man Flying Manpower Squads respond on still alarms with them to make up for the smaller staffing. The city didn’t lose the Class 2 rating however in the late 70’s many of the fire companies were running shorthanded. That lead to the firefighter’s strike which finally restored the 5th firefighter on all engines and trucks.
  I still am surprised by this recent announcement. I was told that the Insurance Services Organization (ISO) was no longer grading fire departments that protected populations greater than a million or perhaps half a million people.
  That information I found wasn’t completely true however as on November 20, 2002 the Houston Fire Department which currently protects just under 2,300,000 people was given a Class 1 rating. ISO ratings for fire departments are divided into three basic categories and each is assigned a percentage of the total grade. The first is the actual fire department which includes engine and truck companies and the equipment they carry as well as how fire stations are distributed. This also includes training, staffing levels, pumping capacity, and even the reserve fleet. Engine companies are not supposed to be more then 1.5 miles from the furthest point of the built upon areas of their districts and truck companies are not supposed to be farther than 2.5 miles.
  The fire department accounts for 50% of the grade. The next category is the area’s water supply which accounts for 40% and includes fire hydrant and water main distribution as well as sustainable fire flow rates in key areas. The third category, accounting for 10% is the fire department’s emergency communications system.
  When Houston achieved a Class 1 rating, they received a score of 97.01 which made them the highest rated big city department in the nation. That was in 2002. As a rule, a score of 90% or above is considered to be a Class 1. A score between 80 and 90 is awarded a Class 2, 70 to 80 is a Class 3, and so forth in 10 point increments.
  The Los Angeles City Fire Department had a Class 1 rating for many years. I believe they first received that rating in the late 1940’s. They again were awarded a Class 1 in the mid 1960’s however they lost the Class 1 in recent years.
  The Austin Fire Department (TX) just received a Class 1 rating in December of 2016. The last I read there were 204 fire departments with a Class 1 rating. The standards have been reduced over the years when it comes to staffing of fire companies. As recently as the late 1960’s engine companies were required to run with five and aerial with six in order to receive full credit. Prior to ISO, the organization that did fire department insurance ratings was called the American Insurance Association (AIA) which was preceded by the National Board of Fire Insurance Underwriters.
  Within the last 20 years many fire departments have chosen to be graded by the Commission of Fire Accreditation International. A department does an intensive self evaluation completing a detailed standards of coverage report. This is submitted to the board of commissioners which is made up largely of fire chiefs and officers from around the country. They review the material according to nationally recognized standards and then issue an evaluation based on compliance to those standards. This determines whether or not the fire department receives accreditation.

• #3 by Rich on February 1, 2017 - 6:12 PM

  

  I thought they where a class 1. For years.??

• #4 by David on February 1, 2017 - 4:24 PM

  

  Wow, considering that for example FDNY is I believe ISO 4 if it’s still true (although I’ve read that they’re for some reason rated smehow differently than the other departments).

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