NFPA Journal - January/February 2020 - 6

NFPA BOARD OF DIRECTORS

OFFICERS
Keith E. Williams, Chair
Underwriters Laboratories Inc, retired
Northbrook, Illinois
James Pauley, President
President and CEO, NFPA
Amy R. Acton, First Vice-Chair
The Phoenix Society
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Russell B. Leavitt, Second Vice-Chair
Telgian Corporation
Tempe, Arizona

First Word

by Jim Pauley

NFPA President

Donald R. Cook, Secretary
Shelby County Department of
Development Services
Pelham, Alabama
Roger W. Montembeault, Treasurer
The Montembeault Group
Tampa, Florida
Kwame Cooper, Assistant Treasurer
Los Angeles Fire Department, retired
Los Angeles, California
*Sally P. Everett, Assistant Secretary
Clerk, VP, and General Counsel, NFPA
*Bruce H. Mullen, Staff Officer
Executive VP, NFPA
*Paul DeFronzo, Staff Officer
Chief Financial Officer, NFPA

he last few months of 2019
were difficult for the fire
department in Worcester,
Massachusetts, a city not far
from NFPA headquarters.
In November, a Worcester firefighter, Lt.
Jason Menard, died battling a home fire.
Menard's death occurred just weeks before
events to mark the twentieth anniversary of
the Worcester Cold Storage and Warehouse
Co. fire, a devastating event that killed six
of the city's firefighters. Two decades later,
the Worcester Fire Department was again
mourning the loss of one of their own.
In the wake of Menard's death, The
Boston Globe ran an article where fire safety
experts called for more sprinklers in residences. The Worcester Telegram & Gazette
ran an op-ed by Kathy Spencer-whose husband, Lt. Thomas Spencer, was killed in the
1999 cold storage fire-calling for change
and expressing her hope that another
family would not have to cope with such a
devastating loss.
Worcester has launched a task force to
look at firefighter safety, and the city should
be applauded for taking this step. Looking
ahead, our hope is that home fire sprinklers
are part of the discussion-and of every
discussion of fire and life safety-on how to
better protect first responders and residents.
And we hope the discussions lead to action.
Those of us in fire safety know the benefits of sprinklers. For more than a decade,
model building codes have included the

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provision for fire sprinklers in new homes
for two simple reasons: the majority of fire
deaths and injuries happen in homes, and
today's homes burn faster than in years
past. These facts require sprinklers, as well
as smoke alarms, to reduce loss effectively.
But we also know the fierce opposition
we face in getting sprinklers into new
homes-opponents have argued for decades

Those of us in fire
safety know the
benefits of home fire
sprinklers and their
ability to reduce
loss effectively.
against this proven, life-saving technology.
Massachusetts, like many other jurisdictions around the country, has succumbed
to special interests and omitted the code
provision, or not acted on legislation, that
would further sprinkler protection. These
actions have allowed many substandard
homes to be built.
None of us wants to be having the same
discussion decades from now-we need
to act to better protect citizens and first
responders for generations to come. And
the way we do that is to protect every new
home built in the United States by including fire sprinklers.

James Sullivan
Westford, Massachusetts
Terms Expire in 2021
John D. Bonney
Alendi Consulting
Ropley, United Kingdom
Brion Callori
FM Global
Johnston, Rhode Island
Martha Connors
Digital Media & Marketing Consultant
Newton, Massachusetts
Reginald D. Freeman
Hartford Fire Department
Hartford, Connecticut
William J. Fries
Department of Defense
Washington, DC
R. David Paulison
Global Emergency Solutions
Davie, Florida
Louis Paulson
Contra Costa County
Fire Protection District, retired
Walnut Creek, California
Michael Wallace
West Palm Beach, Florida
Terms Expire in 2022
Hatem Kheir
Kheir Group
Cairo, Egypt
Patrick J. Morrison
International Association
of Fire Fighters
Washington, DC
Teresa L. Deloach Reed
Oakland Fire Department, retired
Oakland, California
Stacy N. Welch
Marriott International
Bethesda, Maryland

*Not a Board member

NFPA

Sprinklers Now

DIRECTORS
Terms Expire in 2020
Eric R. Rosenbaum
Jensen Hughes
Baltimore, Maryland
NFPA Journal - January/February 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NFPA Journal - January/February 2020
