Madison Township. Fire Department PPC rating increases by 2 classes

MADISON TOWNSHIP — Fire Chief Ken Justus reported that the Madison Township Fire Department has increased its Insurance Services Office (ISO) public protection classification for the first time in 20 years.

“We actually skipped two grades,” Justus said. “We went from a score of 57.6 to 73.74. According to the ISO rep, this doesn't happen very often.

“Many improvements have been made at the county level and at the dispatch center. The new tanker helped a lot. Adding the Town of Mansfield Fire Department to our structured fire response gave us additional personnel.

Justus said ISO ratings are considered for residential, commercial and industrial property insurance premiums as well as a number of other variables specific to the construction of the insured structures.

Some of the factors included in the comprehensive PPC assessment are emergency communications, fire department apparatus and equipment, personnel and training, operational considerations, water supply, fire prevention and code enforcement, public fire safety education and fire investigations.

The PPC grading system falls between grades 1 and 10, with grade 1 being the highest grade. The Madison department has earned a 3/3Y classification, making it the highest ranked fire department in Richland County.

Of the 1,692 community ratings in the state of Ohio, only 361 communities have a Class 3 or higher rating. Of those, there are only 241 communities in the state with a Class 3 PPC score.

The old Madison Township Fire Department PPC rating was 5/5 for over 20 years.

“The recent improvement in our score and rating is due to the hard work done by the firefighters and fire department officers,” Justus said.

“The divided classification is because only part of our community recognized fire hydrants as part of a pressurized water distribution system.

“Residents and businesses located within 1,000 feet of a recognized fire hydrant should receive some form of savings on their insurance premiums after September 1, once this pricing takes effect .”

The “Y” designation is a special classification for otherwise lower-ranked areas without a credible water source (areas outside or more than 1,000 feet from a recognized fire hydrant).

“This is a major accomplishment for the Madison Township Fire Department, and I am very proud of the firefighters and officers of the Madison Township Fire Department for their hard work,” Justus said.

“We will continue to constantly improve and provide the best possible service to our community. »