CHICAGO -- NFPA President James M. Shannon kicked off its annual conference Monday talking about the great successes in fire prevention nearly 138 years after the city was destroyed by the "Great Chicago Fire."
But, he warned that the job is not over. And, with the drastic changes in climate, Americans must prepare for the next challenge in prevention -- wildfires and alternative fuel sources.
Shannon set the stage for his keynote address when he told the story of an NFPA board member who told him last year: "You should smile more when you give your speech."
There's usually nothing to smile about as the NFPA head relates the often grim statistics associated with fire -- deaths, injuries and dollar losses.
"But when we think about NFPA and the work that it has done year in and year out for well over a century now, there's no reason that we shouldn't smile. The product of that work and our legacy is that families and communities are spared grievous loss."
He spoke of the many campaigns that the NFPA has spearheaded.
During the last three years, he has spoken about the fire-safe cigarette campaign. In 2006, four states had adopted legislation while in 2007, he reported that 15 states had signed on. The following year, it was up to 35 states. Now, all but two have laws.
Only Michigan and Wyoming are not on board. Officials in Michigan are close, however.
"And, if any of you are from Wyoming, please see me after this meeting."
On another front, Shannon said that the industry must rely on technology to get things done.
"We always believed that we could only get that job done on a national basis by getting the Congress to act and we beat our heads against that wall, dutifully, for a couple of decades," he said. "When we stopped, stepped back and looked at the problem differently, we realized that technology, specifically the internet, had given us the tool we needed for a whole new strategic approach."
As an example of the importance of new technology, he spoke about NFPA 72, the National Fire Alarm and Signaling recommendation for residential smoke alarms. They are cited for reducing the number of fire deaths in the past 30 years.
The latest changes to code include helping warn people who are hard of hearing, better voice notification systems, and mass notification.
"Our challenge is to take these technological changes that we know improve safety and develop strategies to see that those changes are implemented and used as widely as possible. That's why NFPA 72 has saved so many lives."
He also addressed the very heated discussion on residential fire sprinklers. He said that, as the economy rebounds, today's efforts to require sprinklers will be a major life safety tool in new homes. Homebuilder groups in more than a dozen states have put the brakes on towns adopting sprinkler codes.
"We can do this. We can build this into a national campaign that can protect millions of families over the next generation."
Shannon warned the audience that wildfires will be one of the biggest fire problems of the next decades because of the changing climate.
"We are seeing more fires and much bigger fires than we have ever seen before. And the problem is in evidence not just here but all over the world."
The NFPA's Firewise Program is working to develop several new initiatives to help mitigate the problem in the urban interface area.
Another effect of the changing climate is the variety of alternative energy programs. The new energy sources, such as bio fuels and electric cars, are creating additional safety hazards to the responders.
"We are already in discussions with the Department of Energy, the automobile industry and our colleagues in the fire service and research communities about how we can tackle these issues."
Shannon said the NFPA and all of its members and supporters look forward to keeping up with the challenges.
"Our job is to make sure that these are not just exciting years but years we will look back on as ones of historic accomplishment for NFPA; and for the cause to which we are committed."
