Plano Fire-Rescue received confirmation Monday of the department’s “accredited” status with the Center for Public Safety Excellence. The accreditation, administered by the Commission on Fire Accreditation International (CFAI), was presented to Fire Chief Brian Crawford during the 2013 Excellence Conference.
“Plano Fire-Rescue worked diligently to complete this most current self-assessment for accreditation from CFAI, the standard in the fire service,” stated Chief Crawford. “This process builds a framework of excellence by which the PFR will continue to serve our citizens while looking inward for self-evaluation and improvement.”
In congratulating the entire Plano Fire-Rescue team, Mayor Phil Dyer said, “Speaking on behalf of the entire city council we are grateful for the highly professional and talented team of men and women who serve in the fire department.”
City Manager Bruce Glasscock also said, “We take great pride in this accomplishment. It reaffirms that our Plano Fire-Rescue team has the most-advanced training, skilled staff and equipment to serve the ever changing needs of our community.”
The comprehensive self-assessment and evaluation model enables fire and emergency service organizations to examine their service levels and performance in comparison to industry best practices. This process leads to improved service delivery by helping fire departments to determine community risk and safety needs, evaluate the performance of the department and establish a method for achieving continuous organizational improvement.
PFR was first accredited in 2001 and a second accreditation confirmation was completed in 2006. Monday’s accreditation confirmation is the third Plano has received from CFAI.
Plano is the only fire department in the United States to be accredited by CFAI and the Commission on Accreditation of Ambulance Services (CAAS) and to hold a Class 1 Public Protection Classification from the Insurance Services Office, Inc. PFR received confirmation of the CAAS accreditation in February and the Class 1 ISO ranking was renewed in February 2011.
“As I visit with people in Plano, I am proud to tell them that their fire department is one of the best in the country. These accreditations prove my case,” said Crawford. “These agencies look for the gold standard in public service agencies and they have confirmed that Plano Fire-Rescue meets the challenge.”
Story courtesy of the City of Plano