05/18/2006: "Fire Insur May Fall If Near Hydrant"

If your house is near a fire hydrant, your fire insurance premium may go down. Hard work on the part of the San Juan Island Fire Department District 3 has paid off in the form of an improved fire insurance rating for the fire district. Washington Survey and Rating Bureau (WSRB), the agency responsible for determining fire protection classifications has awarded the district a Class 7 rating. The rating is an improvement over the Class 8 rating the fire district has held for the past 20 years.

The improved rating should translate to a 10% to 20% decrease in premiums paid for homeowner's insurance for homes qualifying for the new rating. The rating applies to homes and businesses located within 1000 feet of a fire hydrant on San Juan Island. And there may be a break for home owners who can prove a steady and available source of water, such as having a stand pipe that is connected to a pond, and is known, and clearly & constantly available to the fire department.

The fire district was last graded in 2003. At that time the rating bureau recommended increasing the number of fire hydrants on the island. The fire district started a program then to fund up to 50% of the cost of new fire hydrants. Under that program, the fire district increased the number of homes protected by fire hydrants by over 20%.

When rating a fire district, WSRB looks at water supply, fire department operations, communications and fire prevention.

Water supplies account for 39 percent of the total rating. That portion of the review makes sure the fire district has a water supply adequate for fire suppression beyond its daily maximum consumption. The survey looks at pumps, storage and filtration. Fire-flow tests are performed at representative locations in the community and the distribution of fire hydrants is reviewed.

The fire department makes up 39 percent of the total rating. Based partly on the number of engine companies and the staffing available to man those engines, the rating also includes a review of the distribution of fire stations throughout the area and checks that the fire department tests its pumps regularly and inventories each engine company's nozzles, hoses, breathing apparatus and other equipment. Although the department continues to struggle with maintaining a sufficient number of volunteers, the extensive training that the volunteers put in was recognized. Also helping to lower the rating was the department's resident volunteer program at the headquarters station.

Communications account for 9 percent of the rating. ISO evaluates the emergency communications center, looking at the number of operators at the center; the telephone service, including the number of telephone lines coming into the center; and the listing of emergency numbers in the telephone book.

The remaining 13 percent of the review is based on the community's fire prevention programs. The main factor assessed is the frequency of inspections of schools, businesses and public places. San Juan County fared poorly in this area due to the lack of a fire inspection program by the County.

The review also gave the fire district a list of goals to work on to further improve its rating. Areas to improve include: increased firefighter staffing; increased water main size in commercial districts; conducting fire inspections; conducting pre-fire plans on commercial buildings, schools, institutions and similar facilities.