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1.1 INTRODUCTION
Needs analysis and objective planning
may take a significant amount of time to complete properly. However,
it is the only way to ensure that resources are used efficiently
and effectively. A department that provides a program to address
a low risk situation to public safety may not be making the best
use of its resources. For example, a department may be very effective
in inspecting restaurants routinely although fire deaths and injuries
are occurring in apartment buildings. Modifying the program to
address the risks to apartments while maintaining the relative
fire safety of restaurants would be a better use of resources.
To improve the fire safety situation
in a community, the fire department must use all available resources
effectively and efficiently. In order to do this, the fire prevention
objectives must be established for the community. The challenge
arises in creating the most effective programs to achieve these
objectives with the available resources.
It is important to devote adequate
time to planning.
The fire concerns of a community should
be systematically identified and analyzed to establish a profile
of:
This analysis will enable a fire department to select the most effective fire prevention activities to address each particular concern. Activities have been categorized into three areas:
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The fire risks of a community can be
determined by analyzing its fire losses to determine the risk
indicators for various identifiable categories. Risk indicators
are those fire safety issues that are of concern to the community,
such as fatalities, injuries and dollar losses.
1.2 IDENTIFY THE FIRE RISK
Identifying the fire risks of a community involves more than determining where the largest dollar loss is or where the most fatalities are occurring. Finding the answers to where, when, why, who and how much will help to focus the solutions.
To analyze the fire concern(s) of a
community, all available information should be included to determine
what is most at risk from fire. This information should
then be used to create a picture of the fire risk(s) in the community.
Fire risk is defined as the chance of a fire occurring and the impact of a fire should it occur. It is not simply the frequency of fire in a subject property. Properties with a very low probability of having a fire (indicated by no fire loss records) but are occupied by a large number of non-ambulatory persons would probably be considered a significant fire risk. Buildings that have only a few occupants but incur a large number of fires every year may also constitute a significant risk.
Fire Risk = Probability of Fire Occurrence x Impact of Fire Occurrence |
Fire risk can be organized into three basic headings:
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Organizing the information in this way
helps to focus the analysis of the fire safety situation. Often
risk is organized according to property information, particularly
when considering an inspection program. However, occupant information
may be more appropriate when considering a public fire safety
education program or fire information may be more appropriate
when focusing on fire incident evaluations.
Methods
Simple/Preliminary
A detailed analysis of a community's
fire risks (as described below) should be conducted. If this is
not possible, then a more subjective analysis should be completed.
For example, interviews and discussions with informed persons
in the community and the department can be conducted or a list
established of the properties and residents that are most at risk
and why. There should be some statistics or other rationale to
substantiate why the identified properties or occupants are at
a higher risk.
The agreed upon fire risks of the community
should be prioritized. Asking objective questions will help to
substantiate these risks and their priority. For example, commercial
property inspections may be identified as a high priority due
to the many inspection requests that the department receives from
lawyers and insurance agents. Is this truly reflective of the
community's fire risk? Or is it more an information service provided
to the community? If resources are scarce, can the department
make better use of its time by inspecting other identified fire
risks, such as retirement homes, rather than providing this service?
As time permits or more information
becomes available, a more detailed analysis should be conducted
to ensure that the conclusions reached are valid and will help
in future planning and evaluation.
Thorough Analysis
Sufficient information should be compiled
to adequately describe a community's fire risks. This information
can be used to create a profile of the fire situation to focus
the solutions. (See Appendix I for some examples of needs
analysis and a table that can be used to help organize the available
information.)
Having some idea of the number of properties
in the community is essential for planning how to address the
fire risks. It is one thing to plan to inspect one hundred properties,
quite another to consider inspecting five thousand. Is this feasible?
How many staff will be required? How much time will it take? These
questions cannot be answered without an estimate of the number
of properties. It is also important to know how many properties
are involved to determine the effectiveness of your department's
actions.
Some of the information may prove difficult
to gather or assess. Most municipalities do not know the total
number of each type of property in their community. If this is
the case then estimates should be used. Information can be obtained
from the community's planning, property, or buildings departments.
Some information is also available from Statistics Canada. Accurate
information should be gathered over time.
When the required information is not
readily available, it may be appropriate to gather data before
conducting an analysis. For instance, some departments count the
number of high-rise residential buildings. However, this may cause
an unacceptable delay in defining the fire risks. Therefore, a
more simple, preliminary approach may be needed in the interim.
The information should be analyzed to determine the relative risk
in each category of property, taking into consideration both probability
and impact.
In the analysis, all statistical and
background information should be stated clearly and objectively
to minimize the effects of factors unrelated to the actions of
a fire department. For example, the number of fires per thousand
population is an objective means to measure the rate of fire occurrence
as it eliminates the impact of changes in population. However,
fire loss statistics alone do not fully indicate the fire risk.
A community's fire concerns should be
described in terms that indicate an adequate understanding of
the situation. For example, stating that careless smoking by nursing
home residents between the hours of 2200-0600 is a serious fire
problem in the community, will allow fire departments to target
their programs more effectively.
1.3 CREATE A FIRE CONCERN PROFILE
Once the fire risks have been identified,
fire departments should know exactly what is happening.
The next thing to consider is why it is happening.
Assessing the causes will help to provide
the most effective remedy. Often, the solution to a specific fire
risk may be dictated by the nature of the problem. For example,
it may be more appropriate to address careless smoking fires,
which can be caused by a lack of fire safety awareness, alcoholism
or some other reason, through public safety education than by
inspecting properties. However, it may be most appropriate to
provide a program based upon the identified risk group, not the
underlying cause. For instance, concern about fires in rooming
houses could be addressed by inspecting all rooming houses in
the community. Alternatively, it may be best to combine different
types of programs such as property inspections and the education
of occupants.
Listed below are some possible factors
that may increase the impact of fire. Any combination of these
may also contribute to the overall fire concern.
Once it has been determined why there
is a fire concern, the most appropriate steps to improve the situation,
and, ultimately improve the overall fire safety of your community
should be considered. (For guidance on selecting the most effective
programs for the community, see Section II.)
Note: The impact of re-allocating resources
must be considered when determining the appropriate programs to
select. An evaluation of existing programs will provide an indication
of the effect of changing, reducing or eliminating such programs.
Summary of Needs Analysis Process
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