National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS)
The Virginia Department of Fire Programs (VDFP) manages the reporting of incidents in Virginia to the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS). NFIRS is a system used for tracking all emergency responses with fire departments in Virginia. Anytime fire department resources (personnel/apparatus) leave the station to respond to an incident, then the call should be reported. By reporting their incidents to NFIRS, fire departments document the details of their incidents for legal purposes and additionally document the overall activity with their fire department. Once incidents are reported, then summary statistical reports can be produced for use at their fire department. By reporting their incidents, fire departments get credit for all of the emergency responses that they handle in their area and also help show the value of their public service to their community.
NFIRS is an all-type incident reporting system. Fire departments should be reporting all their emergency responses to NFIRS. All types of calls such as fires, EMS, rescue, hazmat, etc. should be reported to reflect all incidents being handled.
Participation in NFIRS is essential, since important decisions, such as decisions with grant funding, are made at the fire department, local, state, and federal levels using the incident data reported to the system. Incident reports submitted are released so that information is available when making important decisions that may impact grant funding. When you apply for federal grants, the NFIRS database is reviewed. If there is no information available for your department, then they have no data to support a decision.
By using and analyzing the incident data, information on the frequency of call types, the causes of fires, and the amount of loss from fires can easily be identified to help develop appropriate fire prevention plans.