NEWBERRY — The City of Newberry Fire Department was one of 104 fire departments in 36 counties across the state to actively participate in developing community risk reduction (CRR) plans for their jurisdictions in 2021, with Fire Safe South Carolina (FSSC) and its partners.
These designated communities continually work to reduce fire-related injuries in our state, thereby decreasing the risks for residents and firefighters. They also promote consistent fire safety messaging and stress the importance of providing all relative data collected at fire scenes.
“The enthusiasm for obtaining this designation continues to grow, and we remain encouraged by active participation,” Community Risk Reduction Chief Josh Fulbright said.
“We congratulate the 104 designees and are excited to see a 30% increase from last year,” he said. “We look forward to recognizing them with a formal award ceremony during the June Fire-Rescue Conference in Myrtle Beach.”
To earn the “Fire Safe South Carolina” designation, fire departments completed courses to improve data quality, trained community partners to deliver in-home safety visits, and further developed their skills through online National Fire Academy courses in risk reduction and assessment.
In 2021, 366 new community partners were identified statewide, more than 1,000 fire service members were educated on risk reduction-related topics, and nearly 500,000 citizens were educated on fire and life safety topics by local fire departments.
“As we move forward, community relationships must continually be built and nurtured to form mutually-beneficial partnerships,” he said. “These relationships create sustainability in risk reduction efforts, ultimately saving lives.”
Launched in 2017, Fire Safe S.C.’s partners include the S.C. State Firefighters’ Association, the S.C. State Association of Fire Chiefs, and the S.C. Fire Marshal Association. Together, they announced the 104 fire departments obtained the Fire Safe S.C. Community designation.