The Columbia-Richland Fire Department is one of 50 agencies in the U.S. that has been chosen to test the new National Emergency Response Information System (NERIS).
NERIS is slated to become the new standard for fire departments to report their response data online beginning on January 1, 2025. Over the next few months members of CRFD will be exploring the new system and using it to document the department’s work responding to fires, motor vehicle accidents and other emergencies.
“Having good, clear data is a crucial piece to the success of any organization,” said Fire Chief Aubrey D. Jenkins, “When it comes to our department, our response data helps give our citizens a clear picture of what we are doing and it also assists us with applying for grants and making the case to our elected officials for more funding and resources.”
“I look forward to having our members work with this new program so they can become efficient with using it by the new year,” Jenkins added.
Currently data from fire departments across the country is reported to the National Fire Incident Reporting System (NFIRS). That voluntary reporting standard will continue to be used through 2025 and will officially be retired in 2026.
NERIS is being launched by the Fire Safety Research Institute (FSRI) and in collaboration with the United States Fire Administration (USFA). The new cloud-based system will use data submitted to provide near real-time information on the scope of fire and emergency incidents across the U.S. This is turn will help guide the decision-making and emergency planning of several fire departments.
CRFD was selected to help test NERIS because of its commitment to advancing fire service technology. The department also met several benchmarks for the program. These included the population density of our coverage area and our makeup of both career and volunteer firefighters.
Members of CRFD will be trained on the new system and offer feedback on it during the testing phase. This will help ensure that NERIS meets the diverse needs of fire departments and other agencies across the country.
For more information on the upcoming launch of NERIS, click here.
