What's Happening in Youngstown, OH…

The Insurance Services Office, which compares and rates fire services across the nation, has upgraded Youngstown from Class 3 to Class 2.

This rating, which is difficult to attain, has been achieved by only about 1,060 fire departments across the country, which is approximately 2% of the departments operating, according to John O’Neill, the fire chief.

O’Neill says the Youngstown Fire Department has been working hard to achieve the breakthrough, which it has been aiming at for years. The benefit for Youngstown residents is that as the fire department’s rating goes up, indicating the department’s performance is better, its fire insurance rates might come down. O’Neill notes that insurance companies use the ISO ratings to determine property insurance rates for both business owners and residents.

ISO rates fire departments on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the worst and 1 the best. Among the factors that are compiled to determine the rating are the firefighter training, the speed of the department’s response, distance from hydrants, and programs exploring fire prevention education.

ISO evaluates departments approximately once in five years, so O’Neill says the improvement reflects the hard work the department has carried out since 2011, when it received the Class 3 rating.

The new rating takes effect on November 1. Agencies like these can benefit by working with postcard printing companies, which can create cards for regional mailings.