NFPA Journal - May/June 2019 - 70

CRR
community to ensure resources are
allocated most effectively.
The sheer mass of data necessary to
inform a CRA can be intimidating for
anyone who does not hold a degree
in data science. The good news is that
training and technology are available
to build confidence among novice
data wranglers. These tools, and their
promise of making data analytics more
accessible, open the door to CRR implementation across broader audiences.

Partnerships:
Sharing the load
Another critical aspect of effective CRR
is partnerships-teams must be willing
to break down silos and invite stakeholders and potential partners to the
table. In the CRR world, partners are
those who are willing to help reduce
the risks revealed by the community
risk assessment. They offer funding,
knowledge, skills, and boots-onthe-ground effort. Partners can also
increase access to underserved members of the community.
While establishing partnerships
might seem like a less intimidating
CRR element than data analytics,
experience suggests that it comes with
challenges of its own.
When talking with fire departments
about CRR, for example, I frequently
hear enthusiasm for the process quickly
followed by excuses why it doesn't
happen. "We don't have time," fire officials say. Or, "We don't have the skills
to complete all the steps," or "We've
talked about it but it always ends up on
the back burner." The fire service isn't
alone-any stakeholder can come up
with reasons why the process is important yet somehow unattainable.
Fruitful partnerships alleviate these
issues. They allow fire department representatives to take the lead on some
projects and hand the baton to other
agencies as appropriate. Strong CRR
programs are supported by many hands
sharing the load rather than one leader
with very broad shoulders.
In Spokane, Washington, for example, the CRR leadership recognized
the need to provide tailored educational programs to members of their
Russian-speaking community. Jamie

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McIntyre, community risk reduction
manager for the city's fire department,
worked with partners to get important fire safety literature translated
into Russian. Rather than dropping
the materials off to the residents, she
connected with leaders of the faith
community and housing providers and
arranged to deliver direct education
sessions with the help of interpreters.
She leveraged the position of the community leaders to gain her audiences'
trust and used the church and community rooms at apartment complexes
to deliver the sessions in comfortable
environments. McIntyre also manages

The Roadmap

A NEW STANDARD, NFPA 1300,
WILL HELP COMMUNITIES NAVIGATE
THE RISK REDUCTION PROCESS
Guidance on community risk reduction
(CRR) will soon be available in the form
of NFPA 1300, Standard on Community
Risk Assessment and Community Risk
Reduction Plan Development, scheduled
for release in June.
The initial request for the standard was
submitted by the Vision 20/20 project,
a coalition of national organizations and
experts working to coordinate fire prevention efforts, and was strongly supported by NFPA's Technical Committee on Fire Prevention Organization and
Deployment.
The new standard is intended to be
a valuable tool to assist communities in
their CRR journeys. The intent of the standard is to help normalize the definition
of CRR and provide direction in the process. The standard addresses the steps
required to complete a community risk
assessment (CRA) and create, implement,
and evaluate a CRR plan. Additionally, it
includes how to assemble a CRR organization and committee, form strategic
partnerships, and use data to complete a
CRA as well as evaluate CRR activities.
For more information, visit nfpa.org/1300.

a creative partnership with the local
university, utilizing graduate students
from a social work program to enhance
the scope of the program. This partnership helps residents access resources
and education through alternative
means, reducing reliance on emergency services.
Despite the proven effectiveness of
those partnerships, resistance to CRR
remains. During the listening tour,
I heard more than one reference to
firefighters who are more interested in
suppression than prevention. Distaste
for CRR ranged from simple apathy
to the perception of it as a "tradition
killer" that was eradicating the practice
of fighting fires with equipment and
apparatus. Again, though, resistance
to CRR is not limited to the fire service. The fight for limited resources
among public safety agencies can spur
competition rather than collaboration;
some agencies may be cautious about
stepping on others' toes, some may
not want to shift work outside their
comfort zones, and others are so busy
with day-to-day operations that joining
another project feels overwhelming. In
some cases, agencies may fight to hold
solutions close to the vest in order to be
viewed as an important contributor in
the eyes of those holding purse strings.
Many of these reactions stem from
tradition, which is unquestionably
important. It helps reinforce values,
provides opportunities to celebrate
contributions, and helps us reflect on
our progress. But we must also recognize the difference between being
rooted in tradition and being stuck in
it. We cannot block innovation under
the guise of tradition. CRR supports
the fire service mission of saving lives
and property and improving public
safety by getting ahead of a 911 call and
addressing risks before they become
incidents. It enhances tradition with
technology and data. The result is
a modern fire department making
data-informed decisions to guide tailored prevention efforts.
Help is available. NFPA's public education resources include "From Lone
Ranger to Justice League," a tutorial on
building strategic partnerships and one
of the presentations offered by NFPA's

http://www.nfpa.org/1300

NFPA Journal - May/June 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NFPA Journal - May/June 2019