NEWS RELEASE

 

October 15, 2018

For information, contact Owensboro Fire Department Fire Chief, Steve Mitchell at (270) 687-8405.

 

 

On September 1, 2018 the Verisk Analytics Insurance Services Office, INC (ISO) released the Fire Protection Insurance Rating for the City of Owensboro as a Class 2. While the previous rating was also a Class 2, ISO had completely updated the review and point system since the last review. This is the first time the City of Owensboro had been rated under the new, modern and rigorous review process.

 

The areas under review were the 911 Dispatch System, the Water System, and the Owensboro Fire Department. Central Dispatch was awarded 9.30 out of a possible 10 points in the review. The Owensboro Fire Department was awarded 40.73 points out of a possible 50 points. The Water System, which includes a combination of OMU and Daviess County systems within the City, was awarded 32.78 out of a possible 40 points.

 

The most recent addition to the review process is the Community Risk Reduction piece. The Fire Department was awarded 4.28 out of a possible 5.5 points in this area.

 

The total points issued after a divergence factor was 86.99, a strong Class 2.

 

“We completed the rating process in the Spring and have reviewed and researched the documents prior to the release on September 1”, stated Fire Chief Steve Mitchell. “We believe with an appeal we could gain an additional 1.5 to 1.75 points, however this is still a Class 2. Thus we have decided to accept the results and try for an improved rating in about 2 to 3 years. We will develop and implement an improvement process to begin in 2019, mainly looking for areas with no cost implication, mainly procedural in nature. We are generally pleased, however we are simply too close to a Class1 not to look into it and see if there is something we can do at no additional cost to the taxpayer.”

 

Chief Mitchell noted that ISO recognized the City’s effort to maintain response requirements with the addition of an East Side Ladder Company, awarding a 9.17 out of a possible 10 for deployment. However, they did not yet recognize the staffing for the unit since they were not hired at the time. Full staffing is expected near the end of the year. Within the next rating cycle, the unit will be staffed and operating, thus the staffing points will then reflect the new unit. The credit for deployment increased by 19% based on the new resource deployment model.

 

Mitchell noted that a Class 2 is very favorable in the area of economic development as industry and business look for areas to move or expand.

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