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Greenville
Fire
Department
The Greenville
Fire Department provides essential emergency and
non-emergency services to the residents and visitors of the
Borough of Greenville. We are a combination fire department
consisting of five full-time, 4 part-time firefighters and
three volunteer
firefighters. The fire department is under the direction of
a full time Chief. In addition to providing response to fire
related emergencies, we provide emergency medical care,
rescue and extrication and hazardous material mitigation. We
maintain a back-up dispatch center for the County 9-1-1
center. The Borough’s Emergency Management Office is
operated out the fire station. Numerous
services are provided to the community such as a free smoke
detector program, stand-by safety services for large public
events, fire prevention and code enforcement activities,
fire hydrant and vehicle fleet maintenance, fire cause
investigation and traffic signal maintenance. The members of
this department provide a dependable service in a responsive
fashion, while showing care and compassion for those in
need. We will protect lives, property and the environment.
Working together, the members of this department will
provide a professional caring environment that is fair,
honest, ethical and that treats individuals with respect and
dignity.
The department
operates two pumpers, one ladder truck, one reserve ladder
truck, one medical squad and one inspection car out of one
fire station. The department maintains training and
education facilities for the firefighters as well as a
health and physical fitness program. The department answers
nearly 1000 alarms annually and maintains an average arrival
time of three and half minutes to these emergencies.
Fire prevention
and fire code enforcement responsibilities are carried out
by the on-duty firefighters who also function as fire
inspectors. Over 350 public buildings are inspected each
year. During these fire inspections fire hazards are
abated, emergency exits and emergency lighting are checked
and automatic fire detection and suppression systems are
inspected. Construction plans for new buildings and
renovations to existing buildings are reviewed for fire code
compliance. The on-duty firefighters also provide fire
education lectures and demonstrations to community
organizations and during scheduled fire station visits.
Training on the use of portable fire extinguishers is also
provided.
Firefighters
ensure fire hydrants are operational by inspecting all fire
hydrants every six months and by flow testing and painting
all fire hydrants every five years.
How do I
report a fire hazard or fire code violation?
A citizen can report a
potential fire hazard, unsafe conditions related to fire
safety or a fire code violation inside or outside a private
residential or public building to the Department of
Fire Prevention 24 hours a day
at 724-588-3111.
Some common complaints received
are non-working or non-existent smoke detectors, combustible
trash accumulation, obstructed exit doors and Exit signs,
damaged fire hydrants, and electrical hazards.
What is the fire insurance rating of the Borough of
Greenville?
The
Borough of Greenville maintains a Class 4 fire insurance
rating (also known as the Public Protection Classification).
Class 4 is the best rating of any Mercer County community. The
rating is determined by a survey conducted by the Insurance
Service Office (ISO). ISO surveys the fire protection
capabilities of the Borough of Greenville every 15 years.
The survey includes three
critical
areas; (1) fire alarm handling which includes the 9-1-1
telephone system and dispatch capabilities, (2) the
available water supply for fire protection and (3) the
staffing and firefighting equipment maintained by the fire
department.
ISO assigns a fire protection
class number between 1 and 10 to the community. The lower
the fire protection class number the better the rating. A
low fire protection class number provides a financial
benefit to property owners as it is used in figuring fire
insurance premiums in that community.
Why are the
caps and bonnets of fire hydrant painted different colors?
Fire hydrants are color coded
to indicate the amount of water (gallons per minute) that is
available from that fire hydrant. The gallons per minute are
determined during flow testing of fire hydrants.
Fire hydrant color coding, as
recommended by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)
Guideline No. 291, is as follows:
►
Fire hydrant
body - Chrome Yellow
►
Caps and
Bonnet
| Class C |
Less than 500
GPM |
Red |
| Class B |
500-999 GPM |
Orange |
| Class A |
1000-1499 GPM |
Green |
| Class AA |
1500 GPM &
Above |
Light Blue |
NOTE: In Greenville,
fire hydrants that are painted all black are permanently
shut off. Those that are painted silver and red
flow less than 300 gpm.
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