Virginia Department of Fire Programs
Fighting Fires with Facts Newsletter - March 2009
2008 Virginia Fire Dollar Loss and Property Saved Report

Fatal fires prompt national warning - January 2009 has been a particularly deadly month
Belchertown, MA – February 25, 2009 Fire deaths during January are at a pace above 2008, according to information provided by state fire marshals across the country. In a snapshot taken of the number of fire deaths in 28 states by the National Association of State Fire Marshals, at least 173 people have been killed during January 2009 as opposed to 131 in January 2008, an increase of almost one-third. In addition, during January 2009, 82 people died in fires where three people or more were killed as opposed to 42 in 2008 and 51 deaths in 2007. Almost two-thirds of those killed in 2009 were children. Click for more information.

Microsoft Public Safety Symposium
April 14 – 16, 2009
Please join us for the inaugural Microsoft Public Safety Symposium! Registration is Open! This unique event April 14-16, 2009 in Redmond, Washington at the Microsoft Worldwide Headquarters. Registration is complimentary for this premiere event, which builds upon the very successful annual U.S. Public Sector Homeland Security and Public Safety Symposium. Please register as soon as possible to ensure availability as space is limited. For additional information you can visit the Public Safety Symposium website, http://mspublicsafetysymposium.com/.
Click to view invitation.

Reiss Distinguished Lecture
Explosion & Fire at Icepak Coolstores, Tamahere, New Zealand
Dr. Paula Beever, National Director Fire Risk Management, New Zealand Fire Service
Tuesday, March 3, 2009 – 4:30 PM to 5:30 PM – WPI, Higgins Laboratories, Room 116
Reception to follow
RSVP: Catherine Fradette cfradette@wpi.edu no later than Wednesday, February 25.
Click for details

Fire Alarm Control Panels Recalled by Notifier Due to Alert Failure
Click for more information.

FIRE SERVICE LEADERSHIP TO ISSUE A NATIONAL CALL FOR WORKING SMOKE ALARMS TO PROTECT ALL RESIDENTS
Click for more information.

Society of Fire Protection Engineers - Greater Atlanta Chapter 5th Annual Fire Safety Conference
March 17–18, 2009. Click for more information.

Assessors Needed - Dallas Fire-Rescue
Dallas Fire Rescue is conducting Assessment Centers for the following in 2009: Fire-Rescue Battalion/Section Chief, Fire-Rescue Captain, Fire-Rescue Lieutenant. Click for more information.

Upcoming International Conferences
Click for more information.

Vision 20/20 - National Strategies for Fire Loss Prevention
Click to read the press release. The final report can be found here.

Campus Firewatch Media Project launched to encourage students across the nation to become engaged in learning more about fire safety

Innovative project will involve students in providing information about views and attitudes regarding fire and burn safety on campuses Click for more details.