Barrow County, Georgia



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Contact: Captain Scott Dakin Date: September 12, 2018

Public Information Officer

sdakin@

ISO Inspection Could Save Citizens Money On Insurance

Recently the Insurance Service Office (ISO) conducted an analysis for the Public Protection Classification of the structural fire suppression delivery service in Barrow County. With a reduction in the rating to 4/4X for Barrow County Emergency Services, that goes into effect December 1, citizens could see a reduction in their insurance premiums. “The Public Protection Classification is a national standard that many insurance companies utilize to set their fire insurance rating,” commented Interim Chief Alan Shuman. “Many of us have worked hard to prepare for this analysis and to receive the lower rating is a positive thing.”

In order to determine the rating, the ISO looks at emergency communication, water supply and the fire department. These systems are broken down into different categories and rated for their abilities and operations, with the overall goal of judging the fire suppression capabilities of the county.

In emergency communications, they look at emergency reporting, telecommunications and dispatching systems. This is an area where Barrow County has improved over the last five years. With improvements in areas such as the radio system, computer aided dispatch and the 911 system, the department showed improvement in this area of the survey.

For the fire department portion of the analysis, they look at many different categories. This includes equipment, staffing, training, geographic distribution of fire stations, operational considerations and community risk reduction. Barrow County Emergency Services has been able to improve in this portion also, since the last analysis was completed.

The analysis also looked at the water supply systems in Barrow County. There are 5 different departments that supply water to Barrow County. Each one was analyzed based on inspection and flow testing of fire hydrants, alternative water supply operations and the available water compared to the amount needed to suppress fires up to 3,500 gallons per minute.

“Before his recent departure from the department, Chief John Skinner organized a committee to prepare the department for this survey, His dedication and the committee’s hard work helped us in looking at ways the department needed to improve prior to the analysis,” stated Interim Chief Shuman. “Now that the analysis is complete, we can see areas where we can continue to improve.”

The Public Protection Classification survey is now conducted every three to five years. Barrow County Emergency Services is already working towards improvement in preparation for the next survey.

A study will soon be conducted to develop a plan to place future fire stations in the best geographical areas for responses to emergencies. This includes determining the best placement of a new fire station in Bethlehem. This station will be built utilizing SPLOST funding and replace the existing station. “This department must continue to move forward in this growing community,” stated Interim Chief Shuman. “We will look at the survey and find ways to reduce our classification when ISO comes in again.”

Citizens whose homes or businesses are served by Barrow County Emergency Services will want to contact their insurance agents to see if the reduction will have an effect on their insurance premiums.

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Press Release

Barrow County

Emergency Services

Alan Shuman, Interim Chief

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