Hello, everyone!




Kidde Residential & Commercial’s Marketing Department is proud to introduce the company’s Community Affairs Web page, www.KiddeCommunity.com, your new destination for Kidde’s community activities.





Here, you will find an article about Kidde’s Partnership Events. You will also find information about the company’s Nonprofit Partners, as well as core programs like Operation Save A Life.





In addition, we’ve made it easier for fire departments and nonprofit organizations to submit Product Donation Requests through an automated form. Organizations may even submit project and event proposals in the Becoming a Partner section.





Finally, don’t forget to download the latest issue of the Kidde Marketing Newsletter.





We think this Web page will serve as a great resource for both external and internal customers. If you have a question or receive inquiries about any of Kidde’s community activities, please go to www.KiddeCommunity.com. The Web page may also be reached by visiting www.Kidde.com and clicking on “In the Community.”





Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions. Thank you.




Amy Rupert

Public Relations Specialist

Kidde R & C Division

1016 Corporate Park Drive

Mebane, NC 27302

(919) 563-5911, x. 8505

amy.rupert@kiddeus.com

www.kidde.com

For Immediate Release:
January 26, 2010


On January 22nd, Senators Tom Carper (DE) and Susan Collins (ME) introduced the Fire Sprinkler Incentive Act in the Senate. This bill would amend the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 to classify automatic fire sprinkler systems as 5-year property for purposes of depreciation. The bill, S. 2947, was referred to the Senate Finance Committee for consideration. Both Senator Carper and Senator Collins are co-chairs of the Congressional Fire Services Caucus.



"Senator Carper and Senator Collins are to be commended for introducing the Fire Sprinkler Incentive Act in the Senate," said CFSI Executive Director Bill Webb. "Passage of this legislation can have a significant impact in reducing the number of deaths and injuries caused by fire."



On February 25, 2009, Congressman Jim Langevin (RI-2) introduced similar legislation, H.R. 1194, in the House of Representatives. The House version currently has 111 co-sponsors and was referred to the House Committee on Ways and Means.



CFSI will continue to provide updates as this legislation moves through the legislative process.



900 2nd St. NE, Suite 303 Washington DC 20002

Tel: (202) 371-1277 Fax: (202) 682-3473

This article was submitted by Bryan Beall of the Oklahoma LAST team to the Oklahoma Firefighter newsletter.



In 1992, the United States Congress created the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation with the mission to honor and remember America’s fallen fire heroes and to provide resources to assist their survivors in rebuilding their lives. Since that time, the Foundation has created several programs in an effort to fulfill that mandate.



Through a collaborative effort with the Department of Justice, the Foundation developed the Local Assistance State Team (LAST) program to establish local and regional teams to assist surviving families and fire departments that experience a line-of-duty death. The Foundation believes that support for a department that experiences a line-of-duty death can best be provided by resources from within their own state or region. Oklahoma is now benefiting from that program through the formation of Oklahoma LAST.



The main objectives of the LAST program are to:


• Bring expertise to the surviving family in filing the Department of Justice Public Safety Officer Benefit.
• Provide assistance and support to families and fire departments of fallen firefighters.
• Provide the families and fire departments of fallen firefighters the support mechanisms needed before, during and after the funeral.
• Act as a resource for the family and fire department.


The Foundation offers training and guidance to local teams so that they can provide assistance to the family and fire department after a line-of-duty death and to help with filing for federal, state and local benefits. The type of assistance LAST provides varies based upon the needs of the family and fire department, but can range from phone consultation to actual deployment of team members who can assist with the coordination of the events that surround a line-of-duty death.



The most visible aspect of a line-of-duty death is the funeral service. Anyone who has had any involvement in the planning of a funeral for a fallen firefighter will attest that the decisions that are made, resources needed, and related stress to the individuals involved are similar to managing a large-scale incident. Even a “simple” fire service funeral can be a logistical nightmare. LAST can provide fire departments with funeral protocol, locating honor guards, assist with obtaining dress uniforms for members or writing eulogies, among other things.



The less visible ways LAST can assist in the event of a line-of-duty death are by providing resources for grief counseling for family and department members, fire service chaplains or CISD teams, as well as assistance in applying for state or federal benefits.



Oklahoma LAST is still in the organizational phase, but is working very closely with Kansas LAST until a more formal team is established in Oklahoma. Active or retired members of the fire service, chaplains or professional counselors are eligible to become members of LAST. The Foundation provides training for new members.



For more information on Oklahoma LAST, contact Bryan Beall at se247@cimtel.net, (918) 865-8384 or (918) 688-1860.



Information on the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation and the LAST program can be obtained by visiting www.FireHero.org.

Prince George’s County Fire Chief Eugene A. Jones announced today his selection for the first five inductees into the Fire/EMS Department Hall of Fame. Fire Chief Eugene Jones announced at a breakfast meeting today that five long-serving former leaders of the Department will be the first five names listed on the elite plaque. An event honoring these individuals was held today, Wednesday, January 20, 2010, at the Northview Community Fire/EMS Station in Bowie.
Fire Chief Jones honored M.H. “Jim” Estepp, Steven T. Edwards, Ronald J. Siarnicki, William E. Barnard and William F. Goddard III. These former leaders each played a key role in the formation of the Fire/EMS Department and their legacy is a part of the Departments history. These five were chosen specifically for their leadership role, being a mentor for Fire Chief Jones throughout his career and for their careers after departing the Department. Chief Jones stated, “The men we honor today are giants in the fire service and I had the privilege to work with each of them in various capacities.” He concluded by saying, “Each of them set a foundational stone in my life.”
The ceremony was the first of many events that will be held throughout the course of this year honoring the 40th Anniversary of a Charter Form of Government in Prince George’s County that created one of the largest, the busiest and the very best combined, volunteer and career, Fire/EMS Departments in the Country, if not the world.
Fire Chief Jones also used the occasion to officially release the 40th Anniversary logo (copy attached) that will be used this year to mark this significant milestone. The logo is surrounded by the names of all those that have served as a County Fire Chief and contains the logos of the Volunteer Association and Firefighters Union signifying our combined service.
Four of the honorees spoke at the event and recounted their time spent with the Department which laid the foundation for their future careers. M.H. “Jim” Estepp was unable to make today’s event. Their comments proved to be motivational for the command staff that had gathered to honor them.
Each honoree received a Distinguished Service Award from Fire Chief Jones. The Award stated:

IN RECOGNITION OF YOUR MANY YEARS OF DEDICATED SERVICE AND LEADERSHIP OF THE PRINCE GEORGE’S COUNTY FIRE/EMS DEPARTMENT AND IN RECOGNITION OF YOUR ACHIEVEMENTS SINCE YOUR DEPARTURE. YOU ARE A TRUE LEADER AND ROLE MODEL FOR OTHERS TO EMULATE.

The honored individuals each has an extensive resume in the fire service, education, management and are heavily decorated with awards and honors. Honored today:

M.H. “Jim” Estepp – Former County Fire Chief, nationally recognized fire service, elected, business and civic leader.

Steven T. Edwards – Former County Fire Chief and currently Director of the Maryland Fire and Rescue Institute.

Ronald J. Siarnicki – Former County Fire Chief and currently Executive Director of the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation.

William E. Barnard – Former County Deputy Fire Chief and currently State of Maryland Fire Marshal.

William F. Goddard – Former County Deputy Fire Chief and currently Fire Chief of Howard County, MD, Department of Fire and Rescue.

For more information contact: Prince George's County, MD Fire Department Public Information Office - (301) 883-7154
Largo Government Center
9201 Basil Court -- Suite #452 - Largo, MD 20774

HOLIDAY FIRE PREVENTION TIPS

According to the United Sates Fire Administration (USFA), each year fires occurring during the holiday season injure 2,600 individuals and cause over $930 million in damage. There are simple life-saving steps you can take to ensure a safe and happy holiday. By following these precautionary tips, individuals can greatly reduce their chances of becoming a holiday fire casualty:

Preventing Holiday Tree Fires
Special fire safety precautions need to be taken when keeping a live tree in the house. A burning tree can rapidly fill a room with fire and deadly gases.

* Selecting a Tree for the Holiday - Needles should be green and hard to pull back from the branches, and should not break if the tree has been freshly cut. The trunk should be sticky to the touch.
o Old trees can be identified by bouncing the tree trunk on the ground. If many needles fall off, the tree has been cut too long, has probably dried out, and is a fire hazard.
* Caring for Your Tree - Do not put your live tree up too early or leave it up for longer than two weeks. Keep the tree stand filled with water at all times. Do not place your tree close to a heat source, including a fireplace or heat vent. Be careful not to drop or flick cigarette ashes near a tree.
* Disposing of Your Tree - Never put tree branches or needles in a fireplace or wood burning stove. When the tree becomes dry, discard it promptly. The best way to dispose of your tree is by taking it to a recycling center or having it hauled away by a community pick-up service.
* Never Put Lit Candles on a Tree - Do not go near a holiday tree with an open flame -- candles, lighters or matches.

Holiday Lights

* Maintain Your Holiday Lights - Inspect holiday lights each year for frayed wires, bare spots, gaps in the insulation, broken or cracked sockets, and excessive kinking or wear before putting them up. Use only lighting listed by an approved testing laboratory.
* Do Not Overload Electrical Outlets - Do not link more than three light strands, unless the directions indicate it is safe. Connect strings of lights to an extension cord before plugging the cord into the outlet. Make sure to periodically check the wires -- they should not be warm to the touch.

Holiday Decorations

* Use Only Nonflammable Decorations - All decorations should be nonflammable or flame-retardant and placed away from heat vents.
* Never Put Wrapping Paper in a Fireplace - It can throw off dangerous sparks and produce a chemical buildup in the home that could cause an explosion.
* Artificial Holiday Trees - If you are using a metallic or artificial tree, make sure it is flame retardant.

Finally, as in every season, have working smoke alarms installed on every level of your home, test them monthly and keep them clean and equipped with fresh batteries at all times. Know when and how to call for help. And remember to practice your home escape plan.

Emmitsburg, MD - The National Fallen Firefighters Foundation staff, members of the fire service, and the community will celebrate the lives of America's fallen firefighters through the lighting of the National Fallen Firefighters Holiday Survivors Tree. A ceremony will be held on Monday, December 7, 2009, at 5 p.m. on the campus of the National Emergency Training Center in Emmitsburg, Maryland.

Building on the holiday tradition established in 2003, the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation will have two trees displaying ornaments and cards that family and fire service members have made in memory of their loved ones. Family members of fallen firefighters from across the country send in tributes in honor of their fallen heroes.

These Holiday Survivor Trees are located both inside and outside of the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Chapel. The ceremony will be followed with light refreshments at the National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Chapel.

Please join Foundation staff, surviving family members, and guests as we celebrate the lives of our fallen heroes.

About the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF)
The United States Congress created the NFFF to lead a nationwide effort to remember America's fallen firefighters. Since 1992, the nonprofit foundation has developed and expanded programs to honor fallen fire heroes and assist their families and coworkers. For more information on the Foundation and its programs contact us at 301-447-1365 or visit www.firehero.org.

Words cannot describe how great if feels to have won the sprinkler vote again in Baltimore. Even better, to our surprise, we won the committee vote by a margin of 7 to 4. EVERY member of the IRC Committee not representing NAHB voted in favor of sprinklers!

ICC's message to residential sprinkler opponents is now very clear, "don't come back...we're done arguing residential sprinklers!"

We won in Minneapolis, we won the committee vote in Baltimore and we defeated (by an overwhelming majority) a floor motion by NAHB to overturn the committee vote in Baltimore. Let's maintain this level of commitment at the state and local level so that we can get the IRC adopted "where the rubber meets the road."

On behalf of Chief Coleman and the entire IRC Fire Sprinkler Coalition, thanks to EVERYONE who took part in and supported this historic event!!!

Jeffrey M. Shapiro, P.E., FSFPE
Executive Director

THE NATIONAL FALLEN FIREFIGHTERS FOUNDATION supports
the U.S. Fire Administration’s Install. Inspect. Protect. Campaign

Encouraging residents to install smoke alarms and sprinklers

More than 3,000 people die in home fires each year in the United States; most in homes without a working smoke alarm. To prevent these deaths, the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA), a division of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is sponsoring a nationwide Install. Inspect. Protect. Campaign designed to raise awareness about how working, properly installed smoke alarms can lower a person’s chances of dying in a fire. The Foundation is supporting this critical effort to reduce injuries and the loss of life to citizens and to firefighters who will be called into action.

The USFA’s Install. Inspect. Protect. Campaign is aimed at encouraging Americans to practice fire safety by installing and maintaining smoke alarms and residential fire sprinklers, which can help save the lives of residents and fire fighters, practicing fire escape plans, and performing a home safety walk-through to remove fire hazards from the home. The campaign is promoting fire safety through a free Campaign Toolkit disc; educational materials; print, radio and television PSAs; children’s materials, community organization-sponsored events and a consumer-friendly campaign Web site.

When both smoke alarms and fire sprinklers are present in a home, the risk of dying in a fire is reduced by 82 percent, when compared to a residence without either. According to the National Fire Protection Association, from 2003-2006, almost two-thirds of home fire deaths resulted from fires in homes with no smoke alarms or no working smoke alarms.

The USFA offers a few helpful tips on smoke alarms and sprinklers:
Place properly installed and maintained smoke alarms both inside and outside of sleeping areas and on every level of your home.
Interconnected smoke alarms are best, because if one sounds, they all sound.
Get smoke alarms that can sound fast. The U.S. Fire Administration recommends that every residence and place where people sleep be equipped with both ionization and photoelectric smoke alarms or dual sensor smoke alarms, which contain both ionization and photoelectric smoke sensors.
Inspect and test smoke alarms monthly and change alkaline batteries at least once every year, or as instructed. You can use a date you already know, like your birthday or when you change your clocks as a reminder.
If possible, install residential fire sprinklers in your home.
Avoid painting or covering the fire sprinkler, because that will affect the sensitivity to heat.

You can help us support the USFA’s Install. Inspect. Protect Campaign by visiting the USFA’s website to view and download the free Campaign Toolkit disc for use in your community and during fire prevention presentations not only during Fire Prevention Week, but throughout the entire year.

For more information on the Install. Inspect. Protect. Campaign and other fire prevention information, please visit www.usfa.dhs.gov/smokealarms or call the USFA Publications Office at (800) 561-3356.

REMEMBER - Install. Inspect. Protect. Smoke Alarms Save Lives!

Tomorrow, October 28 will present to the Fire Service Community a challenge needing our attention as a call to action. The International Code Council’s full International Residential Code (IRC) hearing to vote on critical life safety issues will address sprinkler incentives, smoke detector and carbon monoxide requirements, and protection of lightweight construction building components.



As a member of the ICC, each of us has a responsibility to be present to let our voices be heard on maintaining critical life safety components of the IRC and more so, working to ensure that the structures our citizenry live in are protected to the greatest potential possible.



Our position must be united to maintain residential sprinklers in the code, maintaining the requirement to install carbon monoxide detectors in homes all across America, utilizing performance based standards to determine smoke detector acceptability and finally the protection of lightweight truss assemblies in one and two family dwellings.



Now is the time for all of us to focus on this critical vote and call to arms every member of the ICC to stand up and be counted in support of life safety. See you in Baltimore.

2008 National Fire Problem

Overview
Since the creation of the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA), the Nation’s fire loss has decreased significantly. However, it continues to be higher than more than half of the industrialized countries of the world. Fire departments in the United States respond to an estimated average of 4,500 fire calls each day. Over the last ten years, fires in the United States have averaged about 1,634,150 each year. During this same period, there have been approximately 3,625 deaths and 18,765 injuries as the result of fires each year. Annually, direct property loss from fire is estimated at 11.6 billion dollars.

Over the years, there has been little change in the proportion of fires, deaths, injuries, and dollar loss by the type of property involved. In terms of numbers of fires, the largest category continues to be outside fires (44 percent) in 2008. While there are many of these fires, they are not the source of most fire damage. Residential and nonresidential structure fires together comprise 37 percent of all fires, with residential structure fires outnumbering nonresidential structure fires by over three to one. What may surprise some is the large number of vehicle fires. In fact, in 2008 nearly one out of every six fires to which fire departments respond involves a vehicle.

National Fire Death Trends
From 1999-2008, residential structures have the highest fire death rates ranging from a low of 5.5 in 2005 to a high of 8.4 deaths per 1,000 fires in 2001. Over the same time period, structure fire death rates range from a low of 4.2 in 2005 to a high of 6.3 deaths per 1,000 fires in 2005. Death rates per 1,000 fires are lowest for all fires and vehicle fires. Although death rates are highest for residential structures and all structures, the overall trends decline over the 10 year period. For all fires and vehicle fires, death rate trends remain relatively constant.


Residential Structure Fire Trends and Causes
From 1999-2008, the trends in residential structure were: fires increased 7 percent; civilian fire deaths declined 11 percent; and civilian fire injuries declined 21 percent.

By far, the largest percentage of deaths, 73 percent in 2008, occurred on residential properties, with the majority of these in one- and two-family dwellings. Vehicles accounted for the second largest percentage of fire deaths in 2008 at 18 percent.