preemptionwatch.org

According to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), about 3000 Americans die in home fires every year and thousands more are injured. Home fires are by far the greatest cause of fire deaths and injuries. Children under five and older adults face the highest risk. And anyone who has survived a serious fire injury, or knows someone who has, understands the human costs behind the numbers.

For the individuals and families behind the numbers, the costs of fire injury are incalculable. As one survivor reports on the NFPA website: “For me, the burns I suffered in a home fire led to not only physical impacts, but also the loss of a marriage, and the loss of a career I loved.”

But there’s good news: We know how to prevent home fires: Residential fire sprinklers.  Similar to the systems required in hotels and apartment buildings for decades, home fire sprinklers cut the risk of death by 80% and the cost of property damage by 71%. If you think that spending a few bucks per sq. foot to install fire sprinklers is too expensive, check out the NFPA’s new Faces of Fire campaign and reconsider.

In a grassroots victory reminiscent of the tobacco movement, fire prevention advocates have passed more than 300 local ordinances across the US requiring residential sprinklers in new single- and two-family homes.  It’s an example of grassroots democracy at its finest, but building industry lobbyists in the state capitols have taken a page from the tobacco industry to undermine these life saving local laws.  So far, 12 states have passed “anti-fire sprinkler” laws that preempt these local safety requirements.

The successful grassroots fire prevention movement is fighting preemption while winning impressive statewide victories in California and elsewhere.  The campaign is supported by the Home Safety Council, NFPA, Common Voices, the Phoenix Society for Burn Survivors, fire chiefs, and other members of the fire service.  It’s also a great example of the Winnable Battles that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention believes are so important to continued progress in public health, and an opportunity for the public health community to partner with safety advocates, burn survivors, and the fire service.

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