The Cinnaminson Fire Department announced that it is one of the most elite fire departments in the State of New Jersey and the Nation.
The Cinnaminson Fire Department announced that it is one of the most elite fire departments in the State of New Jersey and the Nation. Through dedication and hard work, the Cinnaminson Fire Department was recently elevated by the Insurance Services Organization (ISO) to a Class 2 Fire Department.
ISO rates communities and their fire departments. These ratings determine how much fire and homeowners insurance will cost home and business owners in a community. Items rated include water supply, fire pump capacity, apparatus and equipment, communications, training, staffing, response times and distances, fire inspections, fire investigation and public education. A community is typically rated every 10 years.
“We knew a few years ago that we were due to be rated in 2016. Because ISO looks back between three and five years, in 2011 we started working toward the goal of increasing our rating from a 4 to a 3,” Chief William Kramer, Jr. said.
A lot of work went into ensuring that the department was doing everything possible to earn a better rating, according to Kramer. This included increasing career and volunteer staffing, increasing the amount of training and in-station duty volunteers participated in, ensuring that apparatus and equipment met the required annual testing standards and increasing the use of automatic mutual aid from contiguous municipalities to ensure that enough firefighters arrived on location within minimum national timeframes.
Frank Ellison, Chairman of the Cinnaminson Board of Fire Commissioners, expressed his appreciation and admiration to the officers and members of the department for such a great accomplishment.
“This effort is one that will not only benefit our residents and business owners by knowing how capable their fire department is, but should show in a reduction in the cost of fire insurance for every property owner in Cinnaminson,” Ellison said. “The entire community should be as proud as I am.”
Chief Kramer isn’t stopping here.
“I am determined to continue to improve what we do and the service we provide. Because of the dedication of the officers and members of the department, I am confident that we can get to the highest rating possible – that being a Class 1 Fire Department, which is typically only earned by fully career fire departments,” Kramer said. “I know we can do it.”
Kramer added that the department is celebrating 100 years of service to the community this year and plans to set the bar higher for the next 100 years.
“I am extremely proud of my members and the Board of Fire Commissioners for their combined effort in obtaining such a prestigious classification,” Kramer said.
For more information on the ISO rating process, visit www.isomitigation.com.
