National Volunteer Fire Council

Water drops have begun for Anheuser-Busch's 2024 Emergency Drinking Water for Wildland Firefighters program, in partnership with the NVFC. https://lnkd.in/getKSK4j

📣 Have you applied for the 2024 HELP Award? If you are a U.S. volunteer #firedepartment - apply today! The application period is now through September 1. CHEMTREC® and the National Volunteer Fire Council will be awarding six departments with $10,000 to enhance their response capabilities and increase local preparedness. Learn more about this award and the application here: https://okt.to/n91Ibq #HELPAward #EmergencyResponse

OSHA PAIN POINT #12: Let OSHA know how the proposed Emergency Response Standard will impact your department! Here is one ‘pain point’ that you can address in your comment. OSHA’s Proposed Rule: The proposed OSHA rules add up to about 3000 pages of text when you include the 21 NFPA standards that are incorporated by reference into the proposed rules. The Pain Point: Reading this much legal text and trying to understand it by July 22 is a massive task that many will not be able to accomplish. Tell OSHA: You need more time to read, understand, and comment on the proposed Emergency Response Standard because of its length and complexity. Find more resources, including a template comment letter, at: www.nvfc.org/osha-standard Submit your comments by July 22 here: https://bit.ly/3KTKqTD

Every fire department contributes to its community in different ways. Jim Horn, captain of Schuyler (NE) Fire & Rescue, says his department emphasizes engaging local youth. They do this by providing fire safety education, giving station tours, offering a junior fire cadet program, and more. Learn more about Horn and his contributions to his community at https://lnkd.in/gqtE3wxz.

Volunteer fire departments have the heart to serve their communities, but they often don’t have the funds to purchase costly department necessities. Recognizing this issue, the NVFC partnered with Nutella® on its “Stacks for Giving Back” program to award a total of $25,000 to volunteer fire departments. The recipients have been announced – find them at https://bit.ly/3zmVaam.

Legislative victory for the fire & emergency services! The Senate has passed the Fire Grants and Safety Act (S. 870), which reauthorizes AFG, SAFER, and the USFA through September 2028. The bill now goes to President Biden’s desk to be signed into law. Learn more at https://bit.ly/3L5v929.

OSHA PAIN POINT #11: Let OSHA know how the proposed Emergency Response Standard will impact your department! Here is one ‘pain point’ that you can address in your comment. OSHA’s Proposed Rule: All wildland firefighters must have NFPA 1140 Wildland Fire Training. The Pain Point: OSHA doesn’t define who is and isn’t a wildland firefighter, and the standard says anyone who responds to a wildland fire is a wildland firefighter. Thousands of structural firefighters who fight small and infrequent brush fires could be required to have wildland training. Tell OSHA: That they need to define who is and isn’t a wildland firefighter. If you extinguish small roadside brush fires, you shouldn’t need the full NFPA 1140 training. Firefighter I training includes sufficient wildland training for firefighters that primarily engage in structural firefighting and occasionally encounter wildland fires. Find more resources, including a template comment letter, at: www.nvfc.org/osha-standard Submit your comments by July 22 here: https://bit.ly/3KTKqTD

Hydration is key to first responders performing at their best. That’s why we’re so excited to partner with DripDrop Hydration, PBC to donate 200,000 sticks of electrolyte drink mix to volunteer fire departments! Departments can enter now for a chance to be one of the 1,000 departments that receive two cases (200 sticks) of DripDrop electrolyte drink mix. https://lnkd.in/gwR8RGH2

The 2024 NVFC Training Summit, which marked the 10th anniversary of the signature conference, had the highest attendance yet. Over 200 attendees from 40 states and the District of Columbia gathered in Buffalo, NY, for a weekend of learning and networking. Find a full recap and photos of the sold-out event at https://bit.ly/3XMWXzC.

OSHA PAIN POINT #10: Let OSHA know how the proposed Emergency Response Standard will impact your department! Here is one ‘pain point’ that you can address in your comment. OSHA’s Proposed Rule: All fire chiefs must receive NFPA1021 Fire Officer III training. The Pain Point: The Fire Officer III certification is only offered in approximately 25 states. Chief officers would face significant hardship in getting the required training and certification. Unpaid volunteer chiefs or part-time chiefs would be required to take classes on weekdays when they have to take time off from their full-time jobs, or they would have to travel long distances to night and weekend classes. Tell OSHA: The cost of accessing NFPA1021 Fire Officer III training will place a financial burden on volunteers. In most cases, this class is not offered on a schedule that is friendly for volunteers. Many volunteer officers will be required to travel to a state where they can receive training, taking time away from their primary job and requiring funds that are often not available. All required training must be widely accessible and, when possible, virtually available. Find more resources, including a template comment letter, at: www.nvfc.org/osha-standard Submit your comments by July 22 here: https://bit.ly/3KTKqTD