NFPA believes that fire, life, and electrical safety are only possible when a safety ecosystem exists to create a culture of best practices and stakeholder accountability. That ecosystem is made up of eight key elements: government responsibility; development and use of current codes; referenced standards; investment in safety; a skilled workforce; code compliance; preparedness and emergency response; and an informed public. NFPA envisions those components as cogs working together; when one cog fails, the entire system can break down. The items below, culled from recent news events, represent a survey of ecosystem successes and failures. More information on the NFPA Fire & Life Safety Ecosystem can be found online.
GOVERNMENT RESPONSIBILITY
RISKY CONSTRUCTION
Elected officials in San Diego County, California, push for 10,000 new homes to be built in areas that the state’s fire service considers to be at high risk for wildfire.
ECOSYSTEM FAIL
MASS. GAS HEADS UP
The gas company behind a string of fires in Massachusetts in September changes policy so that fire departments are now notified immediately
when gas leaks occur.
ECOSYSTEM SUCCESS
PREPAREDNESS AND EMERGENCY RESPONSE
CODE COMPLIANCE
STAMPEDE IN ITALY
Six people die in an Italian nightclub stampede in December. The club had sold 1,400 tickets to the event; the club’s maximum occupancy was 870.
ECOSYSTEM FAIL
GOVERNMENT RESPONSIBILITY
ANOTHER CHINA BLAST
A November explosion at a Chinese chemical factory kills 23 people. After a 2015 explosion there, investigators found that “corruption, political connections, and official collusion” caused “safety systems to be overridden.”
ECOSYSTEM FAIL
PROTECTING POWER LINES
California utilities announce plans to invest millions of dollars into power line upgrades, maintenance, and inspections in an effort to curb wildfires.
ECOSYSTEM SUCCESS
INVESTMENT IN SAFETY
SPRINKLER DOUBTERS
At a hearing on a proposed home sprinkler ordinance, fire officials in Sheridan, Wyoming, falsely suggest that sprinkler effectiveness hasn’t been proven, and that benefits may not
outweigh the cost.
ECOSYSTEM FAIL