Community’s ISO score is on the rise

The Hinckley Fire Department recently announced that the township’s recent evaluation from the Insurance Services Office that the township’s Public Protection Classification has changed from a Class 4/4Y to a Class 3/3Y for its structural fire suppression delivery system.

An ISO fire rating is a score provided to fire departments and insurance companies by the ISO. The score reflects how prepared a community and area is for fires. While it mainly focuses on the local fire departments and water supply, there are other factors that contribute to an area’s score.

For residents and businesses, the improved PPC rating means there may be a chance of obtaining lower property insurance prices.

The PPC is based on a comprehensive evaluation of multiple aspects of a fire department and its Structural Fire Suppression Delivery System. Some of the factors that influence this classification include:

• emergency communication (dispatch services)

• fire department apparatus and equipment

• fire department personnel and training

• fire department operational considerations

• water supply

• fire prevention and code enforcement

• public fire safety education

• fire investigation.

The Hinckley Fire Department was able to improve their overall score by 6.6% through the hard work and training performed by our firefighters and officers.

“The support of the Hinckley Township Community increased our ability to reach this enhanced score,” said Sean Barrett, acting fire chief.

Barrett noted that the split classification is due to the fact that only 33% of the township has recognized fire hydrants as part of a pressurized water delivery system. The second number of the rating is for areas outside or greater than 1,000 feet of a recognized fire hydrant.

The “Y” designation is a special classification that recognizes a superior level of fire protection in otherwise lower rated areas with no credible water supply, he added.

Of the 1,692 community evaluations in the state of Ohio, there are only 361 communities with an evaluation of Class 3 or greater. And of those communities, there are only 241 in the state of Ohio with a Class 3 PPC score. ∞