State Farm® promotes fire sprinklers at Bloomington Home Show

Posted by on Mar 18, 2013 in education |

State Farm announced that recently, homeowners got a chance to have their questions answered about home fire sprinklers systems by stopping at its booth at this year's Bloomington Home Show. The show is a premiere event in Bloomington, Illinois. Visitors to the booth were able to talk to representatives from the Home Fire Sprinkler Coalition, local fire departments and learn more about State Farm's support of residential fire sprinklers. State  Farm cites the death and injury toll of house fires and recognizes the life saving benefits of these systems. "Residential fire sprinklers are incredibly valuable to produce stronger, safer homes where lives are saved and a family's biggest investment, their home, is better protected," said Bloomington Fire Chief Mike Kimmerling. State Farm Agent Rick McLean and representatives with State Farm Bank also were present to answer insurance related and home financing questions. Related articles Home Fire Sprinkler Coalition announces two new stipends for fire departments Successful fire sprinkler activation saves Tucson home Fire in campus housing controlled by fire sprinklers Fire sprinkler saves apartment...

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Everyone’s favorite Fire Dog celebrates his birthday today; Happy Birthday Sparky!

Posted by on Mar 18, 2013 in birthday, Cake Boss, celebration, education, fire safety, NFPA, party kit, Sparky the Fire Dog |

Today, we celebrate Sparky the Fire Dog's birthday! Of course, Sparky likes to remind us (as shown in the video) that it is a good time to brush up on our fire safety tips, and he is correct! On a lighter note, birthdays are a great time for fun and celebration! Remember Sparky's 60th birthday two years ago when we had Carlo's Bakery (home of TLC's The Cake Boss) make an amazing cake just for his special day?! Also, our Sparky the Fire Dog party kit provides everything you need to create a special day for your own little...

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Home Fire Sprinkler Coalition announces two new stipends for fire departments

Posted by on Mar 6, 2013 in education |

Through funding from a U.S. FEMA Fire Prevention & Safety Grant, the nonprofit Home Fire Sprinkler Coalition (HFSC) will offer two new stipend programs to U.S. fire departments looking to increase home fire sprinkler education within their communities. HFSC will award 15 U.S. fire departments with $1,500 stipends to partner and complete an education program with their local technical/vocational schools. Working together, those students, who may be future members of the homebuilding industry, will learn about the benefits of home fire sprinkler systems. The second stipend program provides $1,000 to 25 U.S. fire departments to pay for materials to build demonstration units and conduct live home fire sprinkler demonstrations within their communities. HFSC provides guidance for building the units and conducting a public education event through its free Fire and Sprinkler Burn Demonstration Kit. Only U.S. fire departments that are members of HFSC’s free BUILT FOR LIFE Fire Department (BFLFD) Program can apply for the stipends. Visit HFSC and sign up to become a BFLFD Apply for the $1,500 technical/vocational education program stipend by March 29. Apply for the $1,000 side-by-side demo stipend by April...

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Getting homebuilders on board with fire sprinklers

Posted by on Mar 5, 2013 in education |

An article in the International Association of Fire Chiefs’ (IAFC)OnScene magazine, written by Gary Keith, vice president of field operations and education at NFPA and president of the Home Fire Sprinkler Coalition (HFSC), pinpoints the many ways that the HFSC reaches out to homebuilders with education about fire sprinklers. The article underscores the National Association of Home Builders’ (NAHB) opposition as the leader in the “powerful anti-sprinkler legislation charge” as evidenced by the fact that “the group's online document Value of NAHB Membership lists its work to defeat mandatory sprinkler protection as one of the membership benefits.” Mr. Keith states that while other organizations have focused on advocacy HFSC has been “tackling the problem from another angle: education.” HFSC has reached out proactively to homebuilders and has exhibited NAHB's International Builders Show (IBS), “which is the best-attended conference for the homebuilding industry, drawing tens of thousands of professionals every year.” As an example of HFSC’s educational outreach, the article explains that the organization “also offers an interactive, 3-D behind-the-walls educational online video, which shows how an NFPA 13D system is supplied and installed and how it operates in a house.” Mr. Keith says that “the tide is turning as more homebuilders want to learn about home fire sprinklers and are starting to offer them regardless of their communities'...

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2011 latest estimates on major fire causes now available

Posted by on Mar 4, 2013 in education |

NFPA has published the latest statistics on major fire causes. The statistics are based on fires reported to local fire departments and include trend data that indicate the evolution of the problem. NFPA’s latest estimates of: Home fires started by playing Electrical failures in home fires Home candle fires Home cooking fires Home fires involving electrical distribution or lighting equipment Home heating fires Intentional home structure fires Home fires started by smoking materials The above fact sheets contain links to the complete statistical reports from which the data comes...

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