NFPA Journal - September/October 2017 - 10

Dispatches
the public and even among many inspectors, regulators, and "In Compliance," page 33). In addition, an effort to raise
marina owners. "That's why we needed a more comprehenawareness of the issue has begun, which includes a new
sive approach," Grant added. "This work gives us a unique
Web page, nfpa.org/esd, with links to many NFPA resources,
perspective we had not had previously."
including previous FPRF studies, NFPA Journal articles,
Information in the report will likely be used to create
facts, and statistics, and proceedings from the workshop
more bite-sized resources to help strengthen safeguards in
Grant led in 2015 that ultimately sparked the creation of the
the many areas that could lead to ESD, Grant said. Those
latest report.
resources could include field guides or
checklists for marina managers, electrical inspectors, boat owners, and others
to identify issues such as stray currents.
number of
total ESD deaths
percentage
number
BY THE
The report could also provide guidance
ESD deaths,
in the month of July
of ESD deaths
of known ESD
NUMBERS
2012-2016
from 1986 to 2016-
occuring in
deaths in the
to boat manufacturers, public educaby far the most
freshwater
U.S., 1986-2016
tors, and marina owners on how best to
of any month
rivers or lakes
relay electrical warnings to consumers.
Source: Fire Protection Research Foundation report, "Marina Risk Reduction," 2017.
It will also inform an array of codes and
standards, including NFPA 1, Fire Code; the National ElecWhile there's agreement that it's good to see the wheels
trical Code®; NFPA 70B, Electrical Equipment Maintenance;
turning on the ESD issue, there's also a recognition that the
NFPA 302, Pleasure and Commercial Motorcraft; NFPA 303,
real work is just beginning. All the information in the world
Marinas and Boatyards; and a number of other industry
won't save even a single life if it doesn't translate into use in
standards for boating and utility companies.
the real world, Meacham said.
Much work on ESD has also already been done or is
"While we make recommendations, it's the stakeholders
underway at NFPA. The 2017 NEC®, for instance, included
in this area who must go further and develop the different
several new provisions to address ESD, including a requirestrategies and implement them," he said. "We look at this
ment for signage at marinas to dissuade swimming (see
report as a starting point."

D E PA RT M E N T O F K U D O S

NFPA Journal
wins three
national awards

ongratulations are in order for the NFPA Journal
staff and contributors, who recently won three national
awards, including two golds, for editorial and design excellence from Association Media & Publishing.
NFPA Journal received gold Excel Awards for best magazine redesign, for the new-look Journal that was introduced
last November, and for best single-topic magazine issue, for
the special "Final Frontier" issue devoted to home fire sprinklers that appeared last October. The magazine also received
a silver award for best opinion/editorial magazine piece, for
the "Facing Opposition" column, by Lorraine Carli, VP for
Outreach and Advocacy at NFPA, which appeared in the special sprinkler issue.
The annual awards recognize excellence and leadership
in nonprofit association media, publishing, marketing, and
communications. Journal editor Scott Sutherland, along with
Jesse Roman, associate editor, received the awards at the

10 | NFPA JOURNAL * S E P T E M B E R / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 7

recent AM&P conference, held in June in Washington, D.C.
There were 830 total entries received for this year's awards,
according to AM&P.
The 2017 awards are the latest honors for NFPA Journal,
which in recent years has received a number of AM&P
awards for its editorial and design work. "We appreciate the
recognition from AM&P, and I think it offers further confirmation that NFPA Journal ranks among the best association
magazines in the country," said Sutherland. "Our primary
goal with every issue is to provide NFPA members with
timely information on all facets of life safety, stories that are
engaging, thoroughly reported, and attractively designed, on
the page and on the Web. If readers from outside that core
audience of
safety professionals
can pick up a
copy of NFPA
Journal and
feel that
same sense of
engagement
and urgency,
then we
know we're
doing something right."

NFPA

esd 81

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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NFPA Journal - September/October 2017