National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS)
About West Virginia's Fire Incident Reporting System
The Public Education Division is responsible for administration of the state’s fire and non-fire incident reporting system. On a daily basis, the division actively supports and promotes the use of computer-based reporting in an NFIRS-compatible format by all West Virginia’s fire departments in an effort to standardize and expedite incident reporting for the state. This enables both the Fire Marshal’s Office and fire departments to access—and effectively use--statistics that better reflect specific fire and life-safety trends and needs in West Virginia.
By the end of FY 2006, approximately 55% of WV fire departments were reporting on-line directly to the USFA national database; 15% more were using purchased computer programs for fire data entry; and 30% were still reporting on paper. As of June 31, 2007, all active West Virginia fire departments were reporting via computer-based systems (both purchased software and the free Federal Client Tool). The division also enforces the codes requiring mandatory incident reporting by all fire departments, oversees eligibility for quarterly funding for part-paid and volunteer departments and prepares quarterly eligibility lists for the State Treasurer.
NOTE TO ALL FIRE DEPARTMENTS:
Please be advised that all NFIRS program downloads are solely for the West Virginia fire departments using the NFIRS Federal Client Tool. While the West Virginia SFMO accepts data from USFA vendor-approved software programs such as Fire Programs, Fire House, etc., technical support and training can only be offered by the SFMO on NFIRS 5.0 Federal Client Tool.
For more information on registration, establishing user accounts, system upgrades, computer requirements, reference documents, data collection/analysis and much more, visit the following websites:
National Fire Information Reporting System (NFIRS) www.nfirs.fema.gov
National Fire Information Council (NFIC) www.nfic.org
For step by step directions to getting an account with NFIRS and to get the program, click here
Monthly Non-Fire Form for months where no fire incident was present.
FIRE DEPARTMENT LISTS:
For downloadable fire department list in alphabetical order, click here.
For downloadable fire department list in county order, click here.
NFIRS FAQS:
For FAQ's on coding of incidents, click here.
For FAQ's on technical issues, click here.
Quarterly Funding Requirements for Volunteer and Part-Paid Fire Departments
On a quarterly basis, the SFMO Public Education Division is responsible for submitting to the State Treasurer a list of all volunteer and part-paid fire departments eligible to receive a portion of funding allocated from the Municipal Pensions and Protection Fund and the Fire Protection Fund.
This list includes volunteer and part-paid departments that have met all eligibility requirements as cited in WV Code sections indicated below for the quarter in question:
WVC §8-15-8a Eligibility for allocation from municipal pensions and protection fund and the fire protection fund
WVC §87-1-2 Reporting of Fire Incidences
Fire departments that fail to submit incident reports in a timely manner will have their name removed from the list that is sent to the State Treasurer, resulting in their department losing the funding from that quarter. These monies are not retrievable.
In other words, once the department has been removed from the quarter’s eligibility list, the monies cannot be restored to the fire department for that quarter. Instead, the lost funding for that department is reallocated among fire departments that are on the eligibility list for the quarter.
Fire departments are consistently notified via e-mail, phone, and certified mail well in advance of the quarterly deadlines. If a department is experiencing problems (technical, personnel, etc.), they should contact the Public Education Division as soon as possible in order to get assistance in complying with reporting deadlines and to avoid losing their funding for the quarter.
Certification and Disbursement Application For State Funds Insurance Premium Tax Money
Once a year, the SFMO requires all volunteer and part-paid departments to submit an updated “Certification and Disbursement Application for State Funds Insurance Premium Tax Money”. These forms are mailed to all departments no later than the end of December and must be completed, signed & dated (Chief’s signature) to the Public Education Division no later than January 31st. All incident reports for the previous year must also have been submitted to the office.
To download 2008 application, click below:
Year 2008 Certification & Disbursement Application for State Funds Insurance Premium Tax Monies
To download information about authorized expenditures using quarterly funding monies, click below:
WVC §8-15-8b Authorized Expenditures
WV FIRE DATA AND STATISTICS
Fire Statistics for West Virginia
FY 2007
|
| Total number of fires: |
8,211 |
| Civilian deaths: |
64* |
| Civilian injuries: |
99 |
| Firefighter deaths: |
5** |
| Firefighter injuries: |
126** |
| Property loss: |
$86,905,702 |
| Contents loss: |
$35,407,397 |
| Total combined loss: |
$122,313,099 |
* As reported by WV FD’s using NFIRS Versions 5.0 and 4.1. Number of fire fatalities differs from SFMO Fire Investigation Division statistics. This is in part likely due to lack of follow-up by FD’s as to fire victims transported out of area to burn centers for treatment, and later died.
** This includes ALL types of injury to firefighters, including fire/smoke, vehicle, explosions, falls, training injuries, etc.