Ontario Fire Service Messenger

September/October 2004 Volume 13 Issue 3

Standard Incident and Casualty Reporting Explanatory Guide

This guide has been compiled to assist fire departments in filing Incident Reports with the Office of the Fire Marshal.

The guide is intended to provide an overview of incident reporting. A full reporting manual is available that details each section of the Standard Incident and Casualty Reports. Users may also contact the Office of the Fire Marshal to obtain additional information or clarification.

Legislative Authority for Collecting Information

Under clauses 9(2)(f) and 9(2)(g) of the THE FIRE PROTECTION AND PREVENTION ACT, 1997 it is the duty of the Fire Marshal to keep a record of all fires reported, to develop and maintain statistical records, and to conduct studies in respect of fire protection services.

Also:

11.(1) The following persons are assistants to the Fire Marshal and shall follow the Fire Marshal's directions in carrying out this Act,

(a) the fire chief of every fire department;

(b) the clerk of every municipality that does not have a fire department;
(c) any member of a fire prevention bureau established by a municipality; and

(d) every person designated by the Fire Marshal as an assistant to the Fire Marshal.

Duty to report

(2) The assistants to the Fire Marshal shall report to the Fire Marshal all fires and other matters related to fire protection services as may be specified by the Fire Marshal.

Submitting report

(3) A report under subsection (2) shall be made in the form and manner and within the time period specified by the Fire Marshal.

Purpose of Incident Reporting

The Office of the Fire Marshal (OFM) collects data on fire incidents, injuries and deaths through the provincial fire loss reporting system and OFM Investigations. This information is used for statistical and research purposes.

The OFM has computer databases dating back to 1983 and research on this data has provided a comprehensive view of trends in fire losses. Historical analysis of fire loss data in Ontario has
resulted in the identification of common fire scenarios, properties and persons at risk.

This information is valuable for the development of fire prevention programs, public education and community risk assessment.

All provision of data is subject to the provincial Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy legislation.

Standard Incident Report and Casualty Forms

Incident reporting is a method of tracking fire, explosion and other emergency responses made by Ontario fire departments. A standard reporting system is the only way of gathering consistent data that permits community level and historical tracking. A manual is available to ensure a common understanding of reporting criteria.

Municipal fire department personnel record data for each call using the Standard Incident Report
and Casualty forms or an electronic equivalent. The forms or electronic data are forwarded to the OFM. Here the data is compiled on a province-wide basis.

A Standard Incident Report (paper or electronic) is required for every response made by a fire department on both fire calls and non-fire calls. A Casualty Report is required for all civilian injuries in fire incidents only, and for fire fighters injured in fire, non-fire calls and other duties.

Timelines for Filing Standard Incident and Casualty Reports

Incident reporting should be done on a quarterly basis (Jan-Mar, Apr-Jun, Jul-Sep, Oct-Dec) in the month immediately following the end of the quarter (Apr, Jul, Oct, Jan). Reports may be filed more often - monthly or weekly.

Process for Filing Standard Incident and Casualty Reports

Mail hardcopy forms to:

The Office of the Fire Marshal Statistics Section

7th Floor

5775 Yonge Street

Toronto ON M2M 4J1

Telephone: (416) 325-3100

Facsimile: (416) 325-3146

Multiple reports issued should be submitted together (i.e. Standard Incident Report with corresponding Casualty Reports should be stapled together; Standard Incident Reports for exposure fires should be filed with the Standard Incident Report for the originating fire).

Fire departments should retain a copy of the form.
Electronic data transfer files should be sent to: jus.g.msg.pubsd.ofm.data@jus.gov.on.ca

Electronic data files must meet data filing specifications (available from the OFM). The OFM does not accept e-mailed copies of the Standard Incident Report forms.

The attention line of the e-mail should have the municipality name and OFM ID code.

The e-mail should include information on the period covered by the attached data files and a contact name.

Filing by Internet:

The OFM provides direct filing over the Internet. Fire departments must contact the OFM for a user account and password. Contact Janis.Walton@jus.gov.on.ca.

Process for Revising Reports Already Filed

When a reporting error is made or when updated information becomes available, a revised hardcopy report must be submitted by fax. Using the fire department copy, the fire department should clearly
indicate which codes are changed, clearly label the report at the top with the word REVISION and fax to the OFM at (416) 325-3146.

OFM Process for Data Verification with Fire Departments

The OFM uses applications for processing data that checks to ensure the codes are valid.

In processing hardcopy reports, missing data fields are coded as "not reported". Missing device records are recorded as "not reported". Reports filed electronically with invalid codes or missing records (casualty or device) data are rejected by the application and returned to the fire department by e-mail for revision and re-filing by fax.

All reports showing a loss of $500,000 or greater are faxed or e-mailed back to the fire department for confirmation at the time of data entry. The fire department should promptly provide confirmation or revision by fax.

All reports indicating an injury that have no accompanying Casualty Report are faxed or e-mailed back to the fire department with a request
for the missing form or a revision to the injury number on the Incident Report. If a report is not filed, the number of injuries is revised to 0 (or the sum of Casualty Reports filed for the incident). For non-fire incidents, only fire fighter Casualty Reports are required. Civilian injuries in non-fire calls are not recorded, the Casualty Report is not input and the injury number is revised to 0.

All forms are input as soon as they are received.

Electronic data files are processed within a week of receiving the file. Confirmation of electronic processing is e-mailed to the fire department as part of the data processing procedure. This e-mail includes a report by month of the number of records processed (fire call, non-fire call) by month and a request for confirmation of all losses $500,000 or more. Reports with invalid codes or incomplete reports that have been rejected by the data processing system are also sent with this confirmation e-mail. These Incident Reports should be printed and returned by fax with the revisions clearly indicated.

In January a review of the data for the previous year is started and reports are sent to the chief of the fire department requesting their review and confirmation of the data. This final year-end review
is necessary to ensure that the OFM has received all reports, that the reports have been processed correctly, and that any revisions necessary are filed and recorded.

OFM contact information is provided with the review package, and follow up phone calls are made by the OFM if a fire department does not reply to verify the data.

Fire Loss Statistics

Although fire departments report fires on an individual occurrence basis, identifying meaningful trends across years can only be done by statistical analysis. Some fire departments have data systems in place for this type of analysis, but do not have the provincial data for comparison. Other fire departments rely on the OFM to provide this type of analysis.

The OFM provides provincial and municipal reports on:

a) fire loss by occupancy classification to assist municipalities in better understanding fire incidence and loss by type of occupancy _ residential, industrial, commercial, etc.

b) fire loss by key factors such as cause, ignition source, area of origin, object first ignited. These reports can be customized to provide the information for all fires or for selected property types, ignition sources, causes, etc. These reports assist fire departments in identifying the top causes/ignition sources of fire in the community.
c) fire injury and fatality statistics. Fire deaths and injuries are important components of risk assessment. Most municipalities do not experience fire fatalities on a regular basis, so local records and statistics do not always permit an effective analysis of potential risk. The use of provincial comparators is an effective means of relating, on a per capita basis, relevant death and injury statistics compared to the provincial average and target risk groups.

d) smoke alarm operation in residential structures that can be compared to the provincial average and tracked over time.

The OFM website provides provincial graphs showing trends over time and identifying key issues in fire scenarios.

Additional data available from the database includes:

a) no loss fire summaries;

b) all response summaries;

c) response time;

d) responding personnel.

OFM Statistical Services Contacts

The OFM Data, Applications and Technical Support unit processes the data and provides reports upon request. We respond to calls by the next business day, and can provide reports promptly by e-mail, fax or mail.

Call (416) 325 3100, and ask for Statistical Services, or e-mail:

amina.ahmed@jus.gov.on.ca

angela.john@jus.gov.on.ca

janis.walton@jus.gov.on.ca

alison.wilson@jus.gov.on.ca (Coordinator, Statistical Services).

Commonly Asked Questions

Question: What is the definition of a fire?

Answer: For OFM reporting purposes, a fire is defined as:

Any instance of destructive and uncontrolled burning, including explosion, of combustible solids, liquids or gases.

Explanatory Notes

For the purposes of this definition:
- "Uncontrolled" means persons and/or property are endangered by the burning.
- "Burning" means the process of self-perpetuating combustion, with or without an open flame. This definition includes smouldering.
- "Explosion" means violent bursting caused by the ignition/burning of a combustible gas, a combustible dust, or a flammable vapour mixture.
This definition excludes the following events except where they cause fire or occur as a consequence of fire:
- Explosion of munitions or other detonating material.
- Explosion/rupture of vessels due to internal overpressure.
- Lightning or electrical discharge.
- Overheat conditions.
Reportable fires:
- Include any uncontrolled fire that comes to the attention of the fire department, whether discovered while in progress or after extinguishment.
- Exclude any fire occurring on Indian Reserves, federal property, Department of National Defence property, or Ministry of Natural Resources land, unless the fire department has jurisdiction through agreement. Responses to fires on these properties should be classified as assistance to another agency. Fires on these properties are tracked and reported by the respective agency having jurisdiction.

Question: In the case where a fire occurs but does not result in any monetary damage, does this require the entire completion of a Standard Incident Report?

Answer: Yes, it is very important to complete all required sections of the SIR for all fire incidents. Be sure to enter "0" for the dollar loss estimate.

Question: When do I complete a Casualty Report?

Answer: When the fire department responds to a fire/explosion call, any fire related injuries or deaths (civilians or fire fighters) should be reported. The total number of injuries or fatalities should be included on the Standard Incident Report and one Casualty Report completed for each person injured.

For non-fire responses, do not report the number of civilian injuries on the Standard Incident Report, and do not file a Casualty Report. Report only the number of fire fighter injuries or fatalities, and file a Casualty Report for each fire fighter injured.

Please note: The casualty name and address is not required by the Office of the Fire Marshal, although you may want to record it for your own records.

Question: What is the definition of an injury or death?

Answer: For the OFM reporting purposes a fire death is defined as:

A person who dies as a result of injuries sustained during a fire incident.

For the purposes of this definition, report death or injuries:
- directly resulting from fire (e.g. burns, asphyxia, etc.);
- resulting from secondary complications arising from fire injuries (e.g. pulmonary edema, pneumonia, etc.);
- injuries sustained while involved in fire control, a rescue attempt or escaping the dangers of a fire;
- injuries sustained as a result of destruction caused by fire (e.g. roof collapse, projectiles, etc.).
For on-duty firefighters, also include death or injury:
- sustained on route to or returning from a fire scene;
- heart attack or stroke suffered while involved in fighting a fire.
Death as a result of the injuries sustained must occur within one year and one day of the incident.
Reportable fire deaths:
- include suicides by fire;
- include homicides by fire (i.e. arson fires that result in deaths).
Exclusions to fire death reporting:
- exclude people that die by fire resulting from vehicle accidents;
- exclude fire deaths occurring on Indian Reserves, federal property, Department of National Defense property and Ministry of Natural Resources land unless the fire department has jurisdiction through agreement. Fire deaths on these properties are tracked and reported by the respective agency having jurisdiction.;
- exclude deaths from a fire that is otherwise controlled (e.g. death by CO poisoning).

Question: When a vehicle fire occurs following a motor vehicle collision, is it a 01 Fire or a 62 Vehicle accident?

Answer: If there is a fire, it is reported as response type 01 - Fire. There are codes for vehicle collision in cause and ignition source.

Question: What if a person is injured by fire due to the motor vehicle collision?

Answer: If the fire is a result of a vehicle collision, civilian injuries or fatalities are not reported. A fire fighter injury or fatality should be reported. See details on reporting of injuries and deaths.

Question: How long should a fire department retain its copy of a Standard Incident Report?

Answer: The OFM inputs hard copy Standard Incident Reports and transfers electronic data files into a computer database and retains these electronic records permanently.

Hardcopies of non-fire Incident Reports are entered but not retained. Hardcopies of fire Incident Reports are retained for two years.

OFM Investigations fire reports have a schedule for retention and archiving.

Your municipality may have retention schedules that differ from the OFM. The fire department must follow municipal retention schedules.

However, for OFM purposes, fire departments should retain incident records for two years. Also, please make sure that the OFM has received records before shredding.

Question: In an amalgamated municipality with more than one fire department, where more than one of fire department responds to a call, how is an Incident Report filed?

Answer: Over the past number of years amalgamation has "joined" many fire departments into new ones under a new amalgamated municipality. The way Incident Reports are filed does not change - one Incident Report per incident. (The only exception to this rule is where a fire department from another municipality "assists" and an Incident Report is filed by the other fire department using the code 91- Assistance to other fire department in the response type.)

The fire department ID is the OFM number assigned to the municipality that funds the fire department. If a fire department wants to identify a response to an incident by a division within the municipality, a code up to two digits (alphabetical or numeric) may be put into the sub area boxes (under S Area) on the Standard Incident Report. The OFM can then provide call listings broken down by these areas.

However, only one Incident Report can be filed by a municipality for one incident, so if more than one department within a single municipality is responding to an incident only one can be identified using the sub area boxes. The total number of personnel on the scene should include all fire personnel attending from all divisions from the municipality.

Question: Is an address only required for fires? Is it necessary for any other types of incidents?

Answer: The OFM does not record addresses for non-fire incidents, however your fire department may require these addresses.

Question: Where can I obtain additional copies of forms, manuals, Standard Codes Lists, envelopes, etc.?

Answer: As with the case of manuals and code sheets, additional copies of the forms may be obtained from the OFM regional offices. For reference, the manual is now on the OFM web site along with the standard code list. (http://www.ofm.gov.on.ca/english/Publications/SIR/default.asp)

Question: Our department would like to file the Incident Reports electronically. How can we do this?

Answer: Over 70% of Incident Reports are filed by electronic file transfer. As there are many different computer systems, the OFM has developed a set of standards for filing electronically. These standards are fairly simple, but usually require some programming on the part of fire departments. Contact Alison Wilson at alison.wilson@jus.gov.on.ca for more details on these specifications.

The OFM provides the option of filing Standard Incident Reports by Internet connection, so that smaller fire departments may file this way without developing special computer applications. Contact Janis Walton at Janis.Walton@jus.gov.on.ca for more information.