I sat in total bewilderment as I read a June 2016 article in the Huffington Post stating that my governor here in South Carolina, Nikki Haley, openly opposed residential sprinkler systems. The article, “How Nikki Haley Helped Fuel The Homebuilding Industry’s War On Fire Sprinklers,” also discussed the dismissal of two state fire marshals, John Reich and Adolf Zubia, both of whom were gaining traction in South Carolina for sprinkler system mandates in all construction.

Fighting lobbyists

How could this possibly be the case in a state consistently in the top 10 percent for fire deaths, according to NFPA and CDC reports? How could this be when, according to the NFPA, South Carolina places in the top 10 locations for the largest firefighter LODD incidents after nine Charleston firefighters perished in a furniture store that should have had a sprinkler system? How could this be when South Carolina places in the top 10 states for the most “at-risk” categories for fire deaths in education and poverty? Surely sprinkler systems would be a given in South Carolina!

After years of lobbying attempts by the South Carolina Fire Marshal’s Office and the South Carolina Firefighters Association—including luncheons and dinners, side-by-side burns and testifying before state lawmakers—the push for sprinkler mandates have largely come to a halt. The reasoning has remained in debate, according to the Huffington Post article. In South Carolina, it appears that the voice of the fire service is no match against the dollars of the lobbyists or the soundproofed legislative hallways at the state capital. It was a gallant fight but one that was lost for similar reasons nationwide.

The South Carolina fire service fought this fight as the nation’s fire service stubbornly fights all of its fights, including on the fireground—head on. We need to realize that we simply can no longer operate this way. Just as the ignition to flashover timeframe is now occurring faster than our on-scene arrival times, often leaving us precious little to save with a direct fire attack, the political climate has also changed. Taking our fight straight to lawmakers at the capital also leaves us little to influence.

We need to change our strategy and tactics. Not only does an aggressive fire prevention and education/relations program help in combating the ignition to flashover times, so too is this strategy and tactic effective in our political battles by getting ahead of the lobbyists. South Carolina lost this fight because it continued a head-on battle at the state capital where it could not compete against powerful homebuilder lobbyists entrenched with money and influence. South Carolina still hasn’t adjusted its battle plan to include the power of Jane Q. Public in local communities throughout the state.

Who is Jane?

Jane is a local teacher whom I have had the pleasure of getting to know over the last few years. Jane has been teaching in the public school system for more than 26 years, with 19 of those years in South Carolina, and she has taught mostly in Title I schools that service “at-risk” communities. Jane is highly educated with undergraduate and graduate degrees in education and technology, and is a state-certified mentor for new teachers. She has been active in her church and community, and has the respect and the ear of many friends, community members, peers and administrators in the school system. Jane remembers having firefighters come to her classroom to speak with her students about fire safety and knows the importance of smoke detectors; however, it was what Jane did not know that should be a very big concern for all of us, and around whom our new battle plan should center. After many years of living and working in Beaufort County, SC, Jane was unaware:

• That in Beaufort County, the fire department and EMS are separate organizations
• That only one ambulance services her growing retirement-age community
• Some fire apparatus are only staffed with two firefighters
• What the leading cause of fire in her community is or how many fires her department responds to
• Of the low costs of installing a sprinkler system in your home
• How a sprinkler system works, how safe they are compared to other plumbing, and that if one head activates they all do not activate like they do in movies
• Of the contrast in water damages between a sprinkler head and a fire hose, or sprinkler system water damage and fire damage

Jane is also a taxpayer and thus has more power to affect policy and laws than any lobbyist. How? Because Jane has a loud voice, is influential within her personal and professional circles, and can vote. But Jane has not lent her voice to the fight for better fire service staffing or for the inclusion of sprinkler systems in South Carolina building codes because she has not been educated about her fire service and the battles we fight. She has been uneducated because of the failure of the fire service to reach out and educate her beyond abstract information on social media and websites.

In every community, there are hundreds of Janes who lack the basic knowledge about their fire service and fire protection and who incorrectly assume that all is well simply because they hear sirens and see fires that are successfully extinguished. We assume Jane knows all there is to know about our profession and the challenges we face because she loves and respects firefighters for the job we do. However, there is an obvious informational divide between the fire service and Jane. It’s time to rebuild the bridge.

Until the Janes, who control the political careers of lawmakers, start picking up the phone and calling their representatives and letting their voice be heard at voting booths and at town hall meetings, the fire service will continue to struggle for funding and support. Lives will continue to be put at risk to include the firefighters who are dying in buildings that lack sprinkler systems.

But Jane cannot be educated if our firefighters are not educated, and our firefighters cannot educate Jane if there is no effort to get out of the stations and into the community. Public education and relations needs to be as much of a strategy and tactic as advancing an attack line, because everything we do starts with community support and funding. Not only does a solid education/relations program educate the taxpayers as to the challenges we face and needs we have, but it also reduces the risk we are exposed to.

I challenge each of you to walk through your stations and ask your firefighters simple questions: What is the leading cause of fire? How many fires did your department respond to last year? How many gpms does a single sprinkler head produce? How much does it cost to install a sprinkler system? What is significant about Scottsdale, AZ? What is NFPA 1710/1720 and what do they say?

As they provide answers to these professionally important questions, consider that these firefighters will come in contact with hundreds of Jane Q. Publics in their personal and professional lives in 2017. Now think about your department’s previous failed public initiatives and budget requests, and ask yourself honestly, where does the blame really lie? 

In sum

It’s time for change. Make prevention and public relations part of your department’s strategy and tactics for 2017, and educate the Jane Q. Publics of your community, so your department will have the support and tools it needs to save lives. People don’t know what they don’t know, so this year get out there and educate them.