National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) chair Steve Hirsch has called on volunteer and combination fire departments across the country to respond to the National Fire Protection Association’s (NFPA) 2020 Needs Assessment survey.

“The NFPA Needs Assessment Survey is a once-every-five-years survey that looks at what fire departments are being asked to do, and if they have the resources necessary to carry out those tasks,” said Hirsch.

“We know from past needs assessments that smaller fire departments tend to lack adequate resources compared to larger, better-funded agencies. Having an adequate response rate from volunteer and combination fire departments is critical to ensuring that we have accurate, representative data on the needs in smaller communities in particular.”

NFPA survey published next year

The survey includes questions on PPE, apparatus and equipment, training, health and wellness, and cancer prevention to address critical, timely issues facing the fire service.

The NVFC uses the results of the survey, which will be published by the NFPA next year, to educate federal policymakers on the needs of volunteer fire and EMS. The NVFC also helped the NFPA develop the survey questions.

The NFPA survey is open and available to all U.S. fire departments through January 1, 2021. To date, NFPA has received more than 1,000 responses. If you are a member of a fire department that would like to participate in the survey but have not received it, please email [email protected] with your fire department’s name, state, and zip code. You can also reach NFPA toll-free at 800-343-8890. For more information on the survey, along with reports from previous surveys, visit www.nfpa.org/needsassessment.