News in Brief: February 2020

Firefighter Cancer Exposure Registry Web Page Now Available

The National Firefighter Registry (NFR) Web site, created by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) at the direction of the U.S. Congress, is now up and working. When it opens, the NFR will be a voluntary registry of firefighters that will help researchers better understand cancer in the U.S. fire service. The purpose of the site is to gather as much data as possible to enable firefighters to protect themselves against the potential of a cancer diagnosis by eliminating as much as possible contact with carcinogenic contaminants on the fireground and other emergency scenes; in apparatus; in the fire station; and, hopefully, in daily living.

To be most effective, all firefighters must participate in the registry. Take the time to go to the site at https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/firefighters/registry.html to find out more and sign up for the NFR newsletter. The CDC is still developing the NFR and will notify firefighters throughout the country when the NFR is open for enrollment.

CFSI Legislator of the Year, Board appointment

The Congressional Fire Services Institute (CFSI) has named Sen. Lisa Murkowski (AK) its 2019 Legislator of the Year. Murkowski has been a co-chair of the CFSI Caucus since 2018 and has been a strong advocate for our nation’s firefighters and emergency services personnel throughout her congressional career. The award was presented in Murkowski’s Capitol Hill office by CFSI Executive Director Bill Webb and Director of Government Affairs Michaela Campbell.

Dr. William F. Jenaway, president of the CFSI, announced at the CFSI National Advisory Committee in December that Chief Shane Ray, president of the National Fire Sprinkler Association, was appointed to a newly created board position. Previously, he was appointed South Carolina state fire marshal and was superintendent of the South Carolina Fire Academy. Ray, who joined the fire service in 1984, worked in career and volunteer departments and worked his way through the ranks from firefighter to chief in the Pleasant View and Brentwood fire departments in Tennessee. He was first vice president of the International Society of Fire Service Instructors and a member of the Board of Directors of the International Association of Fire Chiefs.

NJ Division of Fire Safety co-hosts Fire Safety Summit

“Modern firefighting now takes a holistic approach to stemming the losses we suffer in civilian and firefighter casualties and property loss each year,” explained Richard Mikutsky, New Jersey Division of Fire Safety (NJDFS) director and state fire marshal, in his opening remarks at the Mid-Atlantic Regional Fire Safety Summit held in Edison, New Jersey, in December 2019.

Mikutsky continued: “Community risk reduction strategies allow the fire service to take a systematic approach to doing everything possible to prevent fires. Station houses now have iPads and geomapping tools firefighters can use to identify fire vulnerable areas. Additionally, aggressive data sharing with law enforcement and housing inspection departments will help reduce the number of fires in vacant dwellings.”

More than 200 attendees representing the fire service, law enforcement, social services, and education, including local government officials and fire safety advocates, attended the seminar on community risk reduction (CRR).

Among the programs on the agenda were those for seniors, social media, youth, and arson investigation. New Jersey’s Lieutenant Governor Sheila Oliver, who serves as commissioner of the Department of Community Affairs, noted that the seminar is helping to move the industry in the right direction as it embraces the technology and data sharing that have proven to save lives.

The NJDFS develops and enforces the State Uniform Fire Code, trains and educates New Jersey’s fire service, provides public education programs, and informs the general public on fire prevention through CRR. The CRR approach deploys diverse strategies to enforce rigorous local fire code enforcement through community outreach, public education, data mining, and ongoing firefighter training.

According to Summit Coordinator Charles Lavin, “The Mid-Atlantic Fire Safety Summit has attracted significant interest from fire authorities in more than 10 states on the East Coast.”

Citizen CPR Foundation announces initiatives

The Citizen CPR Foundation, which hosted its first Cardiac Arrest Survival Summit in Seattle, Washington, December 10-13, 2019, at the Hyatt Regency Seattle, has launched programs dedicated to sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) training, response, and action that involve CPR/ECC/EMS instructors, nurses, first responders, physicians, community planners, thought leaders, and SCA survivors from around the world.

The Foundation officially launched the HEARTSafe Community (SM) program (https://citizencpr.org/heartsafe) at the December Summit. Richland, Washington, the pilot location for implementation of the program and evaluating the effectiveness of its criteria and guidelines, was awarded the first official HEARTSafe Community (SM) designation.

As part of its new 40 Under 40 program (https://citizencpr.org/40-under-40), the Foundation will recognize 40 elite leaders under the age of 40 for setting up communitywide CPR training, saving lives, product innovations, and other efforts that advance their mission to save more lives from sudden cardiac arrest.

Editor’s note: You may nominate a candidate for one of these positions; the criteria are on the Web site. The deadline for nominations is October 1, 2020.

For information on the Citizen CPR Foundation and how to become part of its initiatives, contact Jennifer Crocker at [email protected] or call (913) 402-1881, ext. 180.

Tool for assessing maturity state of NG911

The NG911 Self-Assessment Tool, now available at https://www.911.gov/project_ng911tool.html, is an easy-to-use downloadable Microsoft Excel file that state offices, 911 authorities, emergency communications centers, and public safety answering points can use to assess their system’s maturity state and identify the next steps needed to continue deployment. It compiles respondents’ answers and categorizes their 911 system into one of five maturity states for NG911 implementation.

For additional information on the self-assessment tool and other helpful NG911 resources, visit 911.gov. Questions about the tool may be directed to ng911wg@hq.dhs.gov.