Fire Safety Research and Resources

The Texas State Fire Marshal’s Office offers a wide variety of fire safety information on our website. A number of other respected organizations offer an even wider variety of fire-safety related reports and resources for those wishing to gain greater insight into various aspects of fire safety.

Fire Safety Equipment

Smoke Alarms in U.S. Home Fires
National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) report includes statistics on home smoke alarm usage, effectiveness, operationality, and home fire fatalities in fires with and without working smoke alarms. Also includes home fire death rate with different combinations of fire protection equipment. Brief discussion of literature on audibility and waking effectiveness.
"We're Out to Alarm Texas" smoke alarm program. Smoke Alarm Installation Survey/Tracking Form (English). Smoke Alarm Installation Survey/Tracking Form (Spanish).
Texas Cities and Towns with Smoke Alarm programs.
U.S. Experience with Sprinklers
NFPA report includes statistics on how often sprinklers are reported in fires, by property use, and their estimated impact in reducing the average loss of life and property per fire. Includes statistics on performance, usage and reliability of sprinklers, as well as leading reasons when system fail to operate or operate but are ineffective. Also includes special study statistics on non-fire sprinkler activations.
Sprinkler Saves: Reporting on lives and property saved by fire sprinklers A great way to search for and find reported fire sprinkler saves in Texas and other states. You can also filter results by occupancy type.
U.S. Experience with Non-Water-Based Automatic Fire Extinguishing Equipment NFPA report includes statistics on usage and performance of non-water-based automatic extinguishing systems, principally wet or dry chemical systems, including how often they are reported in fires, overall and by major property use reporting their presence, as well as statistics on estimated reliability and effectiveness, as well as leading reasons when systems fail to operate or operate but are ineffective.
Bringing Safety Home Fire Sprinkler Initiative The NFPA’s Fire Sprinkler Initiative aims to increase the number of new, one- and two-family homes protected by sprinklers and offers a variety of advocacy tools. The related Home Fire Sprinkler Coalition also offers advocacy materials, fact sheets and videos.
A horrific tragedy struck the Flatbush Jewish community in New York City over Shabbos, when seven children in one family were killed in a fire. Fire investigators found a smoke detector in the basement of the home, but could find none elsewhere. Hours later, the fire department had set up a table on the corner of the block and distributed pamphlets reminding residents they should have smoke detectors. FDNY news conference on the fire.

Outdoor Fires

Brush, Grass and Forest Fires NFPA report examines the circumstances, causal patterns of brush, grass and forest fires reported to local fire departments. Regional differences are also noted. A brief summary of statistics from the National Interagency Fire Center is also included.
Outdoor Fires USFA topical report examines the characteristics of fires that occur outdoors.
Community Wildfire Protection Plan Resources (Texas Forest Service)
The Firewise Communities Program offers Online Courses and Education and Wildfire Preparedness resources.
Fire Adapted Communities Learn how a Fire Adapted Community’s actions address resident safety, homes, neighborhoods, businesses and infrastructure, forests, parks, open spaces, and other community assets.
Safe Grilling Practices from NFPA.

Seasonal Fire Safety

Put a Freeze on Winter Fires NFPA and the USFA remind you that the winter months are the leading time of year for home fires. A wealth of safety tips and information on cooking, heating, candles and holiday decorating.
Carbon Monoxide Safety Tips from NFPA.
Protect Your Family from Carbon Monoxide Poisoning tips from Consumer Products Safety Commission (CPSC).
Carbon Monoxide Safety Tips from Safe Kids Worldwide. Because of their smaller bodies, children process CO differently than adults and may be more severely affected by it.

Youth- and Older Adult-Oriented Fire and Burn Prevention

Burn Awareness - Shriners Hospitals for Children
Can You Stop Children From Playing With Fire Video (Safe Kids Worldwide)
Fire Safety (Safe Kids Worldwide)
Grandparent & Caregiver Guide to Fire & Burn Safety (Safe Kids USA)
Sparky the Fire Dog from NFPA allows kids to explore and learn about fire safety in a safe and interactive environment.
The Kids Guide to Electrical Safety
Fire Risk to Children in 2010 (USFA Topical Fire Report)
Fire Risk to Older Adults in 2010 (USFA Topical Fire Report)
Safety Information for Public Educators NFPA offers information and tools to help public educators teach all audiences about important fire and life safety issues.
Remembering When Fire and fall prevention program for older adults developed by NFPA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to help older adults live safely at home for as long as possible; centered around 16 key safety messages – eight fire prevention and eight fall prevention
U.S. fire deaths, fire death rates, and risk of dying in a fire USFA report includes fire death rates for older adults and children

Topical fire reports from the United States Fire Administration explore facets of the U.S. fire problem as depicted through data collected in the USFA’s National Fire Incident Reporting System. Most of the following reports, down to the category “People with Disabilities,” are USFA reports (in PDF format) that address the nature of the specific fire or fire-related topic, highlights important findings from the data, and may suggest other resources to consider for further information.

Fire causes

Appliances and electrical

Clothes Dryer Fires in Residential Buildings (2008-2010)
Residential Building Electrical Fires (2009-2011)
Understanding Electrical Fires Technology advances have increased the potential for electrical fires. UL is working to better understand this growing hazard, sharing this new information in related articles and multimedia materials.

Cooking

Exposure

Fires and Exposures

Heating

Holiday and seasonal

Intentional

Smoking

Smoking-Related Fires in Residential Buildings (2008-2010)

Where fires occur

Residential buildings

Nonresidential buildings

Who fire impacts

Overall U.S. population

Fire Death Rate Trends: An International Perspective
Fire Risk in 2014. See also: U.S. and state fire death rates

Home fire casualties

People with disabilities

Miscellaneous

Hoarding and Fire Safety from NFPA.
Gasoline and Propane home safety from NFPA.
Fireworks Safety tips, factsheets and report from NFPA. The Alliance to Stop Consumer Fireworks is a group of health and safety organizations, coordinated by NFPA, that urges the public to avoid the use of consumer fireworks and instead, to enjoy fireworks displays conducted by trained professionals.
Fireworks Information Center CPSC offers reports, facts sheets, statistics and video.
Decoding Fire Behavior UL analytical studies provide insight into how changing home configurations; increased fuel loads; and new construction, furniture and appliance materials are changing the nature of and the hazards presented by fires. UL shares this information with Fire Behavior articles and multimedia materials.
Rethinking Firefighter Tactics Today’s structure fires are very different from those faced by prior generations of firefighters. UL is studying existing firefighter tactics in a number of ways, to help firefighters better understand the likely hazards, to keep them safer and to improve their ability to protect residents and structures. UL has also established a Firefighter Safety Research institute to further this goal.

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Last updated: 08/03/2017

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