Assessing Risk and Public Fire Protection in Canadian communities.

The assessment of fire risk in municipalities and grading of public fire protection services have a long history in Canada and the USA. Towns and cities are mapped and assessed in terms of their impact on fire risk on behalf of the Canadian insurance community. The actual fire risk reflects the relationship of risks and how spatial separation, construction and other factors manifest themselves at the block level and beyond. The aim is quantify the degree to which the public fire protection resources would be effective in controlling fully involved structure fires and conflagrations..

The various factors considered in developing the grading/classification of infrastructure and related services have evolved to address development in outlying areas, the provision of sprinklers -to offset the distribution of fire halls- seismic risk and other factors. The assessment of water supplies in various jurisdictions is relatively complex and may not be fully understood by those fire protection engineers more focussed on individual construction projects.

The understanding of municipal fire strategies is important as it provides a context for other measures such as building regulations, sprinkler system water supplies and fire risk control in individual properties including risks with private supplies.

Michael Currie of Fire Underwriters Survey will address how municipal risks are changing and how the fire department, water supplies and other aspects of the grading system have evolved to reflect the needs in 2015.

Speaker

After joining the IAO in 1999, Michael worked with the BC Ministry of Finance Universities, Colleges and Institutes Protection Program (UCIPP) as well as the Schools Protection Program (SPP) and the Canadian University Reciprocal Insurance Exchange (CURIE) programs.  In 2002 Michael began evaluating municipal jurisdictions for their fire risk and public fire protection programs.  After the IAO group of companies was purchased by CGI, Michael worked on the development of a new digital model of fire insurance grading.  Now the National Technical Director, Michael continues to be the architect of the new, digital Canadian Fire Insurance Grading Index.

Date: November 10, 2015
Time: Registration and Reception 5:30pm

Location: Langara Golf Clubhouse, 6706 Alberta St, Vancouver, BC
Cost: Members - $30; Non-members $35. Please bring cash or a cheque payable to BC Society of Fire Protection Engineers to cover the cost of dinner. 
Registration Deadline: November 6, 2015