Governor Henry McMaster has proclaimed January 17-23, 2022, as Community Risk Reduction Week.
The week begins on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, a National Day of Service.
As Clarendon County Fire Rescue (CCFR) continues to prepare for emergency response by providing resources that include personnel, training, equipment, and apparatus, we are also committed to being a leading source of risk reduction. A Community Risk Assessment of call types, development of a Community Risk Reduction (CRR) plan, implementation of the plan, and the subsequent evaluation of the plan are factors in successful CRR.
Our CRR plan will set goals based on identified risk, establish programs, and provide resources that include personnel, funding, time, and community partners. More simply stated by Brent Faulkner of Virtual CRR, “How can we keep bad things from happening to individuals, to our community, and to ourselves, and when it does, how do we keep it small or from getting out of control?”
During CRR Week, we will highlight the 5 E’s of Community Risk Reduction, and the first one on Monday is Education and ends with Emergency Response on Friday.
EDUCATION
Fire and Life Safety Education has been an essential part of CRR for a long time. How it is delivered has and will continue to change at many levels. Although most familiar topics remain, such as smoke alarms, cooking safety, escape planning, and proper fire extinguisher use, our department now has more opportunities with information on medical responses. We offered some information to the public in the past, and we are now better able to target specific needs such as falls and begin to reduce the number of calls of that type. With help from community partners, we will continue to reach out and provide resources focused on the at-risk population of Clarendon County for a safe and healthy community.
ENGINEERING
Systems that require engineering offer a tremendous amount of safety to the buildings we work in, places we visit, schools, and homes. Electrical systems, building materials and designs, suppression systems, and communication technologies are some of the systems we may take for granted. Plans for new construction and upgrades to existing buildings are reviewed to ensure that all systems are compliant with current standards.
Engineering’s impact is evident in many ways in our community, from engineered systems in building construction, suppression systems, and communication to more common items like smoke alarms, car seats, and bicycle helmets. CCFR also uses modern technology and design to make our job safer and provide service with less risk.
ENFORCEMENT
CCFR uses a combination of International Codes as amended by South Carolina, National Standards, State laws and regulations, and local ordinances to create and maintain safe businesses and buildings. Plans review, acceptance testing, and annual inspections help ensure the community, first responders, and property owners are exposed to the least amount of risk in fire and life safety matters.
ECONOMIC INCENTIVE
Partnering with businesses and organizations to provide smoke and carbon monoxide alarm installations, hard of hearing alarms, home safety visits, fire extinguisher training, and complimentary fire and life safety classes with printed materials are vital resources of Community Risk Reduction.
EMERGENCY RESPONSE
A Community Risk Assessment of call types will help set goals based on identified risk. We prepare for response to those emergencies by providing resources to include personnel, training, equipment, and apparatus because we cannot prevent all Emergency Responses. The Community Risk Assessment data will guide us toward programs and resources that will reduce the severity and number of Emergency Responses for a more effective reduction of risk to our community and first responders.
In Support of Community Risk Reduction Week, Governor Henry McMaster released the following proclamation:
Whereas, a fire department in the United States responds to a fire somewhere in the nation every 23 seconds and in South Carolina every 27 minutes and
Whereas, in 2020 fires nationally were responsible for 3,500 civilian deaths, 74 percent of which occurred in the home and 15,200civilian injuries, with 76 percent related to fires in the home as well as an estimated $ 21.9 billion in property damage and
Whereas in South Carolina fires were responsible for 99 civilian deaths, 83 percent of which occurred in the home and 177 civilian injuries all of which were related to home fires as well as an estimated $130.7 million in property damage and
Whereas wild/ and urban interface (WUI) related fires remain a concern nationwide with multibillion-dollar losses in 2020, including an estimated $331,000 property loss in wildfires in our state and
Whereas the fire service responds to a growing number of medical calls for service, surpassing 80 percent of total call volume in some jurisdictions and
Whereas Community Risk Reduction is a data-informed process to identify and prioritize local risks, followed by integrated and strategic investment of resources to reduce their occurrence and impact and
Whereas the value of community support from local, state, and national partners to address community risks is recognized to meet the demands on paid, combination, and volunteer members of the fire service and
Whereas the goal of Community Risk Reduction is to reduce the occurrence and impact of emergency events for both community members and emergency responders through deliberate action in the areas of the five E’s of Education, Engineering, Enforcement, Emergency response, and Economic incentive: and
Whereas most fire-related and many medical calls for service are preventable with the five E’s performed as part of an integrated Community Risk Reduction program and
Whereas Monday, January 17th, 2022 is Martin Luther King Day and is recognized as a National Day of Service and an opportunity for communities to reduce their risk through a series of educational and other programs
Now, Therefore I Henry McMaster, Governor of the great State of South Carolina, do hereby proclaim January 17th -23 2022 as
COMMUNITY RISK REDUCTION WEEK
throughout the state and encourage all South Carolinians to learn more about grassroots initiative of fire service professionals across the nation to raise awareness of the importance of Community Risk Reduction in the fire service community and the opportunity to make our communities safer.
