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Stateside Comment US Correspondent Catherine Levin reports on how volunteer firefighters are funded in the States
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ven after living in the US for more than 18 months, I still cannot get over the size of this country. Last year it took me practically all day to travel to the north part of New York State to visit the State Academy of Fire Science. But in a state where there are nearly 100,000 volunteer firefighters and 1,693 full volunteer departments, it should really come as no surprise. And that’s just one State. According to the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) there are around 800,000 volunteer firefighters making up 69 per cent of the total
number of firefighters in the US. Two thirds of the 30,000 fire departments are staffed purely by volunteers, with many other departments having a mixture of volunteer and career firefighters. So who foots the bill? For some the answer lies in local government, which does fund some volunteer fire departments. Some get funding from local government but have no legal ties and are essentially grant funded at a local level. Other volunteer departments set themselves up as non-profit entities and take advantage of the tax breaks and the flexibility in finding funding that comes with that status. The FEMA grant programmes fund thousands of volunteer fire departments with money for staff, equipment and training. The NVFC itself got $2.5 million from the latest round of grants focusing on recruitment and retention of volunteers, a project that will last two-and-ahalf years. For many though it’s all about bingo, raffles and bake sales. At my daughter’s school the bake sale creates huge sugar fuelled
excitement and a fun way to raise money for school trips and the like. Only in America would you find a fire department raffle off a gun. Yes, in Cornplanter Township, Pennsylvania, this raffle raised $3,500. It pays to know your audience, I suppose. It all seems very unsatisfactory and unstable and yet somehow it has worked for many years. There is some innovation and that comes
projects and invite individuals to fund them, reveals a few fire departments having a go with little success. It’s more common to find campaigns by those who have lost belongings in house fires, asking for help to rebuild their lives. I asked the NVFC how many volunteer fire departments are using crowdfunding to add to their fundraising options. They told me they weren’t aware
“It all seems very unsatisfactory and unstable and yet somehow it has worked for many years” in the form of crowdfunding. Rick Markley, Editor-in-Chief of FireRescue1, which is a US based online resource for the fire service, asked the question recently ‘can crowdfunding save the fire service?’ Well, no, not really, is the answer. A quick trawl of crowdfunding websites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo, which allow people to post
of any departments doing this but they were “not surprised to hear about it” adding that “funding is a huge challenge for volunteer fire departments”. So next time you’re in the US and you see a firefighter waving his boot touting for donations, have a heart and give him a few bucks, because next time he might be raffling them off instead.
Research Excellence awards confirmed for 2014 This year’s Fire Related Research and Development (RE14) conference will take place on November 13 at the Fire Service College. Once again, one project will pick up the FIRE Magazine/Gore Research Excellence Award, along with a cheque for £1,000, and the best poster entry will be awarded a prize of £250
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ow in its eighth year, the awards were created by FIRE and WL Gore & Associates (UK) Limited to recognise excellence in research in the UK Fire and Rescue Service and encourage the continued development of research based innovation and ideas that will help to protect communities and firefighters. Dave Frodsham, Product Specialist at WL Gore & Associates Inc, said: “We are
committed to supporting the development of new ideas and innovation in the UK Fire Service, all of which are driven by research. We continue to support this award so that it will encourage ongoing research that will ultimately make our communities safer.” Andrew Lynch, Editor, FIRE magazine, said: “I am delighted that we are once again running the Research Excellence Awards. The awards have grown in prestige over
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“The awards have grown in prestige over the years and have more than served a purpose in bringing the research and fire communities closer together” the years and have more than served a purpose in bringing the research and fire communities closer together. It is crucial that fire-related research continues to be given
the support it deserves and I am pleased that Gore is once again supporting the awards, underlining the pivotal role industry plays in keeping fire personnel safe.”