QUINCY, MASS. — Fire service organizations are warning against state-by-state legislative efforts, orchestrated by homebuilders, which are designed to prohibit communities from requiring residential fire sprinklers in new home construction.
According to International Association of Fire Chiefs President Chief Larry J. Grorud, there are bills in approximately 15 states that ignore the life-safety benefit of sprinklers.
According to the National Fire Protection Association, approximately 80% of all fires occur in homes, but when home fire sprinklers are present the chances of dying in a home fire decrease by about 80%. NFPA has no record of a multiple fatality fire in a sprinklered building where the system operated. Model safety codes now call for the installation of residential sprinklers in new home construction. A recent NFPA report states that sprinklers reduce the average property loss by 71% per fire.