Fulshear Simonton Fire Department

These Public Protection Classifications come from the Insurance Services Office, Inc., a private agency that evaluates communities' firefighting capabilities. Many insurance companies use these ratings to determine the insurance premiums to charge property owners. The classification considers the fire department's capabilities, available water for fire fighting and the ability to quickly and accurately dispatch the closest fire stations. The best rating is "1" and the worst is "10." In general the lower the rating, the lower the insurance premium.

Why is the closest station not always listed as the responding station?

For operational purposes, the Fulshear Simonton Fire Department always attempts to dispatch the closest fire station(s) to an incident. A fire district's fire station is usually also the closest station, but not always. For example, City of Katy equipment and personnel respond to incidents outside the City limits when they are closer than County-funded equipment and personnel, but they comprise a network of stations that make up the Fulshear Simonton Fire District, which is defined by the ETJ. These stations are funded by City residents who pay more for fire protection to receive a higher level of service, but save money on their lower insurance premiums of ISO Class 6. Property owners outside the city limits pay less for fire protection, but do not receive as high a level of response as defined by the number of trucks, number of paid firefighters, and proximity to a responding network of fire stations. Consequently, properties outside the City limits cost more to insure in varying degrees from ISO Class 6 to Class 10, depending upon the distance of the fire station and or fire hydrant in which the property is located.

Minimum Facilities and Practices to Get a PPCTM Rating:

Before a community can receive an ISO Public Protection Classification (PPCTM), the community must have at least these minimum facilities and practices:

• The fire department must serve an area with definite boundaries. If a community does not have a fire department operated solely by or for the governing body of that community, the fire department providing such service must do so under legal contract or resolution. When a fire department's service area involves more than one community, each of the communities served should have a contract.

If the community does not meet these minimum criteria, ISO will assign the community a Class 10.

Other criteria

• ISO's Fire Suppression Rating Schedule (FSRS) — the manual ISO uses in reviewing the firefighting capabilities of individual communities — lists other minimum criteria for receiving particular PPC ratings.

   

  Minimum Criteria for Class 9 To receive a Public Protection Classification (PPCTM) of Class 9, a community must first have the minimum facilities and practices needed to get a PPC rating. The community must have at least one piece of apparatus with a pump capacity of 50 gpm at 150 psi and at least a 300-gallon water tank. The community must also earn a score of at least 70 credit points on the following items from the Fire Suppression Rating Schedule (FSRS):
  Records
  Records must indicate the date, time, and location of fires; the number of responding members; the number of training sessions; and maintenance of apparatus and equipment. Each community must also keep an up-to-date roster of fire department members.	10 points prorated
  Equipment
  The community must also provide the following equipment:
  At least two 150-foot lengths of 3/4-inch or 1-inch fire department booster hose, 1-1/2-inch preconnected hose, or the equivalent, each with a nozzle capable of discharging either a spray or straight stream.	15 points each
  Two portable fire extinguishers suitable for use on Class A, B, and C fires. The minimum size should be 20-BC rating in dry chemical, 10-BC rating in CO2, and 2A rating in water-type extinguishers.	4 points
  One 12-foot ladder with folding hooks	10 points
  One 24-foot extension ladder	15 points
  One pick-head axe	1 point
  Two electric hand lights	4 points
  One pike pole	2 points
  One bolt cutter	2 points
  One claw tool	1 point
  One crowbar	1 point
  ISO will reduce the total score by 2 points for each 10% that the apparatus exceeds the manufacturer's gross vehicle weight rating. Note: Apparatus weighing more than the street or bridge loading maximums may cause a reduction in the credit for response area. All the criteria, specifications, and tools listed above are important in establishing Class 9 protection. However, the specific size and nomenclature of each individual subitem may be subject to local conditions in the graded community. ISO may credit equipment having other names, or different dimensions, than indicated in the apparatus specifications.   Minimum Criteria for Class 8B Class 8B is a Public Protection Classification (PPCTM) for communities that provide superior fire-protection services and fire-alarm facilities but lack the water supply required for a PPC of Class 8 or better. To compensate for limited water supplies, many communities have improved their firefighting equipment, training, and management techniques, as well as their fire-alarm systems. Class 8B will recognize those improvements.How it works To be eligible for Class 8B, a community must meet the fundamental requirements for a classification better than Class 9. The community must have: an adequate number of well-organized and properly trained firefighters reliable fire-alarm facilities adequate fire-station facilities operational records However, the community does not need to meet the water-supply requirement of 250 gpm for two hours necessary for PPC Class 8 or better. Specifically, to get a rating of Class 8B, a community must meet these requirements: It must meet the minimum requirements defined in Fire Suppression Rating Schedule (FSRS) Section 106, "Minimum Facilities for Applying This Schedule." It must be eligible for at least 5 points in FSRS Section 400, "Receiving and Handling Fire Alarms." It must be eligible for at least 20 points in FSRS Section 500, "Fire Department." An average of at least six firefighters must respond on first-alarm responses to structure fires. For active firefighters, it must conduct a minimum of 24 hours per year of training in fighting structure fires. The water supply must be able to deliver an uninterrupted minimum fire flow of 200 gpm for 20 minutes. The minimum fire flow must be able to start within five minutes of the arrival of the first engine company. The primary responding fire department and all automatic-aid fire departments must be able to deliver the minimum fire flow. The departments must be able to deliver the minimum fire flow to at least 85% of the built-upon areas of the community within five road miles of a recognized fire station. ISO will apply the Class 8B criteria as we survey communities over the next several years.   Minimum Criteria for Class 8 or Better To receive a Public Protection Classification (PPCTM) of Class 8 or better, a community must first have the minimum facilities and practices needed to get a PPC rating and must meet the minimum criteria for Class 9. In addition, the community must have these additional minimum facilities: There must be a minimum water supply of 250 gpm for a two-hour duration for fire protection in the area. If the fire department delivers the 250 gpm through tanker shuttle, large-diameter hose, or other alternative water supply, the water must be available within five minutes of the arrival of the first due apparatus, and the department must maintain the flow, without interruption, for the two-hour duration. The fire department must have at least one piece of suitably equipped apparatus with a pump of at least 250-gpm capacity rated at 150 psi.   For more information . . . ... log on to  or call the ISO mitigation specialists at 1-800-444-4554.