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The needs of the fire service

From NFPA President James M. Shannon:

In June, NFPA released the third needs assessment of the U.S. fire service, following up on previous needs assessments we completed and released in 2002 and 2006. After the terrorist attacks by Al-Qaeda in 2001, there was, at all levels of government, a new focus on improving the capabilities of America’s emergency responders. By the time of the attacks, NFPA had already undertaken the first needs assessment with funding from the U.S. Fire Administration. So the conclusions of that study were timely for policy makers looking for benchmarks for fire departments in the immediate wake of 9/11. Since then, the federal government has instituted the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program to help departments meet some of their most pressing needs. Read more in the July/August issue of NFPA Journal®.

Needs assessment

NFPA reports find improvement but continued needs for America's fire departments

NFPA has conducted a series of national surveys to identify the needs of the fire service for resources required to safely and effectively carry out their responsibilities. The surveys indicated the resources fire departments had, while NFPA codes and standards and other national guidance documents defined the requirements. The gaps between resources in hand and resources required defined the needs.

These reports look at personnel and their capabilities, including staffing, training, certification, and wellness/fitness; facilities and apparatus; personal protective equipment; fire prevention and code enforcement; the ability to handle unusually challenging incidents; and communications and new technologies.

All three studies began with requests from Congress, and the first two studies were conducted with and sponsored by the U.S. Fire Administration and its parent agencies.

2011
A Third Needs Assessment of the U.S. Fire Service (PDF, 1 MB) Errata incorporated August 22, 2011. Download the errata. (PDF, 12 KB)
June 2011. 216 pages
Updated study examining the needs of the U.S. fire service in such areas as training, certification, personnel, apparatus, equipment, and fire prevention, with particular attention to homeland security type incidents.

Selected findings from the 2011 Needs Assessment

Nearly half (46%) of all fire departments that are responsible for structural firefighting have not formally trained all their personnel involved in structural firefighting, down from 55% in 2001 and 53% in 2005.
Seven out of ten (70%) fire departments have no program to maintain basic firefighter fitness and health, down from 80% in 2001 and 76% in 2005.
Nearly half (46%) of all fire department engines and pumpers were at least 15 years old, down from 51% in 2001 and 50% in 2005. Half (51%) of all fire departments cannot equip all firefighters on a shift with self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA), down from 70% in 2001 and 60% in 2005.
Two out of five (39%) fire departments do not have enough personal alert safety system devices (PASS) to equip all emergency responders on a shift, down from 62% in 2001 and 48% in 2005.

More detailed findings and conclusions.

Download NFPA's printable fact sheets:

U.S. Fire Service Needs Assessment (PDF, 101 KB)
Apparatus (PDF, 117 KB) Errata for this fact sheet (PDF, 67 KB)
Fire Prevention Programs and Activities (PDF, 100 KB)
Unusually Challenging Incidents (PDF, 85 KB)
New technology, Dispatch and Communications (PDF, 77 KB)
Personal Protective and Firefighting Equipment (PDF, 94 KB)

Download a Powerpoint presentation on the Needs Assessment report. (ppt, 336 KB)

State-by-state reports

The following are state-level reports based on the findings in each of NFPA's needs assessment reports.

Alabama 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Alaska 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Arizona 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Arkansas 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	California 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet
Colorado 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Connecticut 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Delaware 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Florida 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Georgia 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet
Hawaii 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Idaho 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Illinois 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Indiana 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Iowa 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet
Kansas** 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Kentucky 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Louisiana 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Maine** 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Maryland 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet
Massachusetts 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Michigan 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Minnesota 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Mississippi 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Missouri 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet
Montana 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Nebraska 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Nevada** 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	New Hampshire 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	New Jersey 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet
New Mexico 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	New York 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	North Carolina 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	North Dakota 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Ohio 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet
Oklahoma 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Oregon 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Pennsylvania 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Rhode Island 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	South Carolina 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet
South Dakota 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Tennessee 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Texas 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Utah 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Vermont 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet
Virginia 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Washington 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	West Virginia* 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Wisconsin 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet	Wyoming 2004 2007 2011 2011 fact sheet

*Erratas issued February 23, 2012 for West Virginia report (PDF, 79 KB) and fact sheet (PDF, 74 KB).
**Erratas issued April 19, 2011 for Kansas 2004 report (PDF, 12 KB), Maine 2004 report (PDF, 12 KB) and Nevada 2004 report (PDF, 12 KB).

2006
Four Years Later – A Second Needs Assessment of the U.S.Fire Service (PDF, 4 MB)
Department of Homeland Security, USFA, and NFPA, October 2006. 159 pages
Updated assessment of needs of U.S. fire service in such areas as training, certification, personnel, apparatus, equipment, and fire prevention, with particular attention to homeland security type incidents.
Also see: Download an errata for this report. (PDF, 16 KB)

Matching Assistance to Firefighters Grants to the Reported Needs of the U.S.Fire Service (PDF, 2 MB)
Department of Homeland Security, USFA, and NFPA, October 2006. 41 pages
Analysis of whether grants requested and received have addressed reported needs, by type of need, and whether popular types of grants have resulted in significant change in the overall national level of need.

2002
A Needs Assessment of the U.S. Fire Service (PDF, 1 MB)
FEMA, USFA, and NFPA, December 2002. 160 pages
A comprehensive study done by FEMA, USFA and NFPA examining the needs and response capabilities of the U.S. fire service. Among the factors examined are personnel and their capabilities; fire prevention and code enforcement; stations, apparatus and equipment; and the ability to handle unusually challenging incidents. Results are reported by nationwide and community size.

Also see: "Underfunded, Understaffed, and Undertrained": Read NFPA President Jim Shannon's and others' reactions to the study in an NFPA Journal® Special Report (March/April 2003)