ASK YOUR FIRE DEPARTMENT...

“As a firefighter I am often asked why firefighters do the things we do; so I’ve decided to write a column in The Banner designed to explain the inner workings of our Bonita Springs Fire Rescue Department and the different services we offer to the citizens of Bonita Springs.”

“With this in mind, if you have a specific question you want answered please access the link: “Ask Your Fire Department” on the Bonita Springs Fire Control and Rescue District’s official web site at www.bonitafire.org and I will answer all questions online and may include your questions in future columns. Visit the web site often, all the questions and answers will be archived there as well as a plethora of valuable information concerning the BSFD.”

Frank Giuliano, Battalion Chief

Bonita Springs Fire Control and Rescue District 

Local Fire Department Ratings Can Affect Your Homeowner’s Insurance

by Frank Giuliano, Battalion Chief, Bonita Springs Fire Rescue

I would like to thank everyone who wrote in via the ‘Ask Your Fire Department’ web site.  

I would like to take this opportunity to explain a few regulations that govern the fire service and may explain why we do some of the things we do. 

The National Fire Protection Association

The NFPA was formed in 1896 by a group of insurance firm representatives with the stated purpose of standardizing the new and burgeoning market of fire sprinkler systems.  Eventually, the scope of the NFPA's influence grew from sprinklers to include all aspects of building design and construction.  Headquartered in Massachusetts, the NFPA oversees the development and maintenance of more than 300 codes and standards. A cadre of over 6,000 volunteers representing the fire service, insurance, business, industry, government, and consumers develops these documents. Many state, local, and national governments incorporate the standards and codes developed by the association into their own law either verbatim, or with only minor modifications. Even when not written into law, the codes are typically accepted as a professional standard by which fire departments are measured; as well the standards are recognized by many courts as such.

The Bonita Springs Fire Control and Rescue District attempts to comply with as many as possible based upon the scope, complexity and financial considerations of these industry standards and uses them as a guide in every aspect of our operation.

The Insurance Service Office, or ISO

This brings us to another organization that affects our operation and you, the homeowner’s, pocketbook; the ISO, or Insurance Services Office.  ISO grades each community’s fire service on its ability to fight fires, using the NFPA professional standards and others, and assigns a rating. A rating of one is the highest grade with 10 being the lowest, which represents less than the minimum recognized protection. The grading is based on a Fire Suppression Rating Schedule (FSRS), which was developed by ISO years ago and now is widely recognized throughout the country.  The FSRS is essentially a survey that assesses the available public firefighting facilities. The basic components of the survey are communications, water supply, and equipment, including type of engines and ladder companies, training, fire station location, and manpower at the fire department. The FSRS covers features that determine a community’s ability to control fire damage.

The Bonita Springs Fire Control and Rescue District

Bonita Springs’ Fire-Rescue services are ranked at Class four, in the urban areas and Class Nine in the very few areas not serviced with fire hydrants. The Class Four puts Bonita Springs FD among the top 10 percent of the over 33,000 communities with fire service in the United States in terms of ISO ratings, saving the average homeowner between 10 to 20% on their insurance rates over a Class Five.  By classifying a fire department’s ability to suppress fires, ISO helps the community evaluate its public fire protection services and helps to secure lower fire insurance premiums for homeowners and businesses.

To clarify, ISO, using the national standards set forth from the NFPA, determines for the insurance industry the amount of insurance premiums to collect from businesses and homeowners in a specific community, based on the local fire department’s ability to mitigate fire loss for that particular insurance company. The better the fire department the lower the insurance cost to the homeowner.  Additionally, Bonita Springs Fire Rescue will have to begin looking at standards that will be published by the Center for Public Safety Excellence as they relate to the Fire Service.

As always, the Bonita Springs Fire Control and Rescue District is open for inspection to you, our citizens, at any time you wish to come by. 

Changes to your Fire-Rescue Department

by Frank Giuliano, Battalion Chief, Bonita Springs Fire Rescue 

In recent years change has become prominent in all areas of government, from state agencies in Tallahassee to small independent taxing districts, serving the citizens of Florida. Voters have spoken loud and clear by electing Governor Charlie Crist, who promises tax and insurance reform. The governor and the state legislature have made attempts, though not all successful, to save money and limit government’s ability to spend money unwisely.

The Bonita Spring Fire Control and Rescue District has also worked to streamline our operations in order to reduce the burden on tax payers. However, because we are a public safety organization, we cannot loose sight of our mission due to cutting costs. We must balance the safety of the public along with the effort to reduce expenses. When making financial decisions, our administrative staff keeps our own mission statement in mind. “The Bonita Springs Fire Control and Rescue District is dedicated to providing the highest quality of fire protection, fire prevention and rescue services to the citizens and their property, in the most efficient and cost effective manner possible.”

Some of the recent changes that we have made have had a profound affect on our organization, along with saving money. The following is a brief synopsis of some of these changes: 

• Early retirement was offered to senior members of the department including administrative staff, fire prevention personnel and firefighters.  Of the 29 employees who were eligible, 13 accepted the option including a majority of the chief officers. It is estimated that the fire district will save a considerable amount annually as a result of this action. The vacant positions were filled through in-house promotions and no new employees were hired in order to back-fill other open positions. We streamlined our operations by combining job functions and creatively moving personnel around as needed.

•  The district is now using smaller rescue trucks, with fewer personnel, instead of large fire trucks when responding to medical calls, reducing the cost and wear and tear on the larger trucks.  The rescue units are Ford pick-up truck chassis manned with two firefighter paramedics.  This enabled us to provide even more efficient service to our residents.

• Changes have been made not only to our fire truck fleet, but also to the way it is maintained.  The district recently purchased two new trucks, as our aging vehicles were beginning to become a financial burden.  This change was studied in-depth by staff members who decided on the following approach:

• An in-house maintenance program was established for minor repairs. Instead of out-sourcing this work, specially trained firefighters are now able address problems while they are on duty. Our head mechanic is a lieutenant with more than 25 years of experience working on large trucks. Although not all repairs and maintenance can be done on site, but both time and money can be saved with this new program.  

• In purchasing the two new fire engines, we are able to sell three aging full-size fire trucks. This will equate to having one less truck in the fleet while still providing the same level of service, since the small rescue squads are in service. We have learned through research that the price of a fire truck is going to dramatically increase in 2009 and 2010 due to new federal regulations on emissions and changes with National Fire Protection Association standards.

Since changes in our administrative staff took place in March 2007, many other small changes have taken place with the Bonita Springs Fire Control and Rescue District in order to streamline our operations and effectiveness. We welcome the public into our stations and are eager to show you the services we provide. The district operates transparently under the Florida Sunshine Laws, and we invite our residents to the monthly fire board meetings held the second Monday of every month at 5 p.m. in the conference room at Station Four at 27701 Bonita Grande Drive.

Please note: Remember to click the “check button” at the bottom of your question screen to allow your question to appear in BSFD’s section of The Banner. Also, you must click “SUBMIT” in order for your question to be sent.

QUESTION:  Posted by, Kelley Pezzella on September 23, 2008

Hello!  I am interested in attending the next CERT Training offered by BSFD.  Is this training still offered?  If so, when and where will the next training be held?  Is there an application deadline?  I am currently a 3 yr. fulltime Florida resident living in Bonita Springs.

ANSWER:

Hi Kelley,

Our next CERT class is scheduled to begin on November 12th.  It is an eight week course, and is held at our Fire Station Four, at 27701 Bonita Grande Drive every Wednesday night from 5:30 pm to 7:30 pm.  You may miss any class that you need to, but we ask you to complete the class that you missed in order to be considered active.  The education that you receive in our CERT Program will be useful in helping yourself and family first, and secondly your neighbors and community.  You will be taught by instructors that are firefighters who have "been there and done that", so to speak.  When you attend your first class, you will receive your member manual, CERT shirt, CERT equipment bag with basic equipment, CERT vest, and other information needed to complete the program.  You can find the CERT application on our website's CERT page.  Just click on the link "More Info."  If you are able to participate, contact Nicole Giuliano at 239-949-6228, and she will be happy to supply you with the information and paperwork that you need to sign-up.

Thank you for your question,

Battalion Chief

QUESTION:  Posted by, Alex Bauer on September 23, 2008

What do you do in the Explorers Program?      

ANSWER:

Hi Alex,

Our Explorers Program is a fairly new program that we've developed to help show young adults between the ages of 13 - 18 what it takes to be a firefighter.  We provide education on the history of the Bonita Springs Fire Department.  In addition, participating students are taught the activities of life as a firefighter, how to become a firefighter, and the physical and educational requirements of a firefighter.  Students are able to watch and participate in training activities that are scheduled as firefighters provide assistance.  Students can participate in an obstacle course.  At the conclusion of the day students receive a certificate of completion, and a certificate for volunteer hours to submit for graduation.  Our current Explorer Post has monthly meetings and training.  if you are interested in joining the explorer program, please contact Nicole Giuliano at 239-949-6228.

Thank you for your question,

Battalion Chief