USFA Fiscal Year 1998 Annual Report to Congress PDF Download

Author: United States Fire Administration
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 62

Get Book Here

Book Description
America's fire death rate is one of the highest per capita in the industrialized world. Over a 10-year period, fire killed more than 5,000 and injured 29,000 people annually. Current trends indicate some improvement of 4,000 deaths predicted. Firefighters pay a high price for this terrible fire record, up to 100 firefighters die in the line of duty each year. Direct property losses due to fire exceed $9 .5 billion a year and the overall fire cost to the American public is $139 billion annually. Most of these deaths and losses can be prevented. The United States Fire Administration (USFA) is optimistic about the continuous improvements over the last 30 years. In fact, America's losses today represent a dramatic improvement from more than 30 years ago. In 1971, this nation lost more than 12,000 citizens and 250 firefighters to fire. Acting to decrease these tragic losses, Congress passed P.L. 93-498, the Federal Fire Prevention and Control Act, in 1974. This law established USFA and its National Fire Academy (NFA). Since that time, through public education, research, data collection and analysis, and training efforts, the USFA has helped reduce fire deaths by at least half--making our communities and our citizens safer. The mission of the Federal Emergency Management Agency's (FEMA) USFA is to provide leadership, coordination, and support for the Nation's fire prevention, control, and emergency medical services (EMS) activities. Understanding the importance of producing measurable results, USFA is successfully: (1) reducing fire deaths, injuries, and property losses in partnership with state and local fire service leaders; (2) developing and delivering training programs for the fire service and allied personnel that help them better protect their local communities; (3) assisting state and local governments in their efforts to prevent and control fire-related incidents, including arson; (4) enhancing the capability of the fire service to respond to all types of emergencies, including wildland fires, emergency medical, hazardous materials incidents and consequences of terrorism; (5) promoting firefighter health, safety, and efficiency and reducing firefighter deaths; (6) initiating research and evaluation procedures to improve fire prevention and protection nationwide; (7) collecting, analyzing, and disseminating fire data to identify national and local trends; and (8) increasing public awareness of fire dangers through a national public education dissemination program.